


Just One Dance

by Mayonaka_no_Tenshi



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst with a Happy Ending, Anxious Katsuki Yuuri, Best friends being supportive, Clubbing, Confident Katsuki Yuuri, Dancer Katsuki Yuuri, Dancing, Light Angst, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, dance club
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-01
Updated: 2018-04-04
Packaged: 2018-12-09 23:25:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 33,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11679279
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mayonaka_no_Tenshi/pseuds/Mayonaka_no_Tenshi
Summary: It was supposed to be just a night out like any other, a chance to relax and forget about the demands of the everyday. Neither thought just one dance with a stranger could change everything.





	1. May I have this dance? Yes, but just the one.

He let out a breath of relief as he walked into the already lively club, knowing that for a few hours he could just be a part of the crowd, let himself go and no one would think a thing of it because this is where people came to do just that. Well, that and sometimes to find someone to share the rest of the night with, but that wasn't his purpose. Not that he hasn’t tried that kind of thing before, but he quickly figured out some time ago that that wasn’t what he wanted from these nights out.

The kind of release he was seeking only required a dance floor and the pounding music. Sure, he might accept a partner now and then, someone to share the music with, but he never stuck around with the same person for more than one song, it’d become kind of a rule, in fact. One song is a good time, two starts to bring "expectations" and the last thing he wants is to deal with the hassle of putting someone off that tries to get too attached. He’s just here to dance.

He scanned the room quickly before heading to the bar, knowing he wouldn't be able to completely let loose until he had a few shots in him.

The night was still young so he took his time at the bar, ignoring the press of bodies coming and going to grab a drink before heading back out onto the dance floor.

He could already tell it was going to be a good night, however. The DJ sounded good and the crowd already had an infectious energy. Once he had just a little more alcohol in his system he’d be ready to go out there and join them.

As he sat there letting his third shot sink in, the rhythm and lights dancing across his skin and into his bones, and combining to create a low-burning, almost giddy tension just waiting for some unknown signal to let go and carry him away with it.

One more drink and two songs later and he could feel the beat pounding beneath his skin, seeping into his veins and becoming one with his pulse. It was time.

He left the bar behind, slipping between bodies and shadows easily as he moved towards his goal, already letting the rhythm and flow take control until his body belonged to the music, a vessel filling to the brink with it until it eventually overflowed into motion.

One of his favorite things about this club was how they limited how many people they let in, even on a Friday night like this, especially early in the night, ensuring there’d be enough space for him to move more freely than the usual jam-packed clubs that only allow for limited gyrations that will still have you bumping into people you don’t intend to. It’s nothing like the open spaces of the studio that allow him all the freedom of movement he could wish for, but for this, it’s enough.

He found a spot near the center of the dance floor, body swaying with every step, eyes half closed, and let go, gave himself to the rhythm. Turning in the spaces between dancers, the music and the feeling it gave him was the only thing that mattered for the next few hours.

 

* * *

 

“I’m not sure about this Chris. I’m not really a ‘club person’ anymore.”

“Come on Victor, just give it a chance. You used to love this kind of thing, why not relive a little of the good ol’ days? Besides, you’ve been working way too hard, I hardly even see you these days. You need to get out more and live a little.”

Victor nodded and sighed, he knew Chris had a point. He hadn’t taken a break in ages and he’d been starting to question what the point of it all was. Still, a club would not have been his first choice. He wasn’t sure he wanted to deal with the crowds and loud music pounding in his ears. He was pretty sure Chris was going to try to get him out on the dance floor too, but it’d been so long since he’d done any kind of dancing, he was sure to make a fool of himself.

He thought he’d left this kind of thing behind him, giving up a wild youth to take on the yoke of responsibility he was expected to. He had an image to maintain, and while he was viewed as a generally fun sort of guy, this was not a part of what people knew him as. He hadn’t been this in so long, it felt familiar and strange as they approached the club. A long line extending from the entrance, even at this late hour, but Chris insisted things didn’t really pick up until after 10pm. Victor had been late getting out of work, as usual, so it was already after 11 now.

The scene was a familiar one and it triggered a slight buzz of anticipation of what he could expect inside. A part of him still clearly remembered a time when this was something he lived for.

He looked up at the bright sign seeming to hover in the darkness over their heads: ‘Eros + Agape’. He supposed the ‘Eros’ made sense but ‘Agape’ seemed a bit odd as a club name.

Before he could contemplate the meaning behind club names, he got distracted as they approached the entrance and Chris waved at the bouncer who nodded back and let them through, past the line of those still outside hoping to get in. Victor couldn’t say he was all that surprised, Chris always seemed to know the right people to get in pretty much anywhere. Truth be told, he had many similar connections, he just rarely needed them for places like this, and even then it was generally something work related.

The door opened and they could already feel the pulsing throb of the music beyond a second set of doors. Once they’d paid the entrance fee, they crossed that final threshold to enter the rhythmic chaos beyond.

Taking in the scene around him, Victor had to admit it was a pretty nice club. It wasn’t like the places he’d frequented years ago, the kinds of places full of drunk college kids, cheap alcohol, worn out furnishings, and a dance floor so packed you’re guaranteed to bump into someone if you were to so much as bat your eyelashes. It wasn’t that he hadn’t had fun back then, it’s just really not what he wanted to experience now, and clearly this place was a far cry from such things, to his relief.

While he wouldn’t quite call the place opulent, it was still very classy: sleek black surfaces, clean modern design, and enough space to walk between people. He thought they might actually be able to make it over to the bar without having to push through a wall of people. All that being said, it was still undeniably a club. Bright lights flashed and reflected off the myriad of shiny surfaces and the music pounded. Friends and partners wandered through the space, hands holding drinks to upturned lips. Laughter got lost under the pulse of the never-ending beat. Lips pressed close to ears to be heard above the din in attempt at communication. There were also plenty of dark corners to hide those seeking privacy in shadows, their lips engaged in a less verbal form of communication.

With a silent sigh, Victor brought his eyes back to Chris’ back as he followed him towards the bar and wondered when the last time he actually kissed someone was, before thinking better of trying to answer that question. It’d been a while, that was all that mattered. He’d gotten sick of all the people just trying to get ahead through his name and connections. None of them had really cared about the person, only his position and image and everything that came along with it. Since that seemed to be all that was important to anyone, that’s what he’d decided to pour all his focus into leaving behind those that sought to take advantage. The work had been endless and he’d achieved even more success, but that seemed to be all he did anymore.

He can’t really blame Chris for dragging him out like this. They’d barely spent any time together in the last year at least. He’d even missed Chris’s last birthday party on account of being out of town for work. As a result he’d promised to go out wherever the other man wanted. That just happened to be this club, as it turned out.

Chris had already reached the bar and was giving the bartender their order. Victor knew that Chris knew what he liked and just stood back a little to wait for the drinks, finally turning towards the main feature of the club, a spacious dance floor, full of people moving to the still pounding beat. Like the rest of the club, it left more space between people than the clubs he’d been to before, and it looked like people appreciated the extra space as he noticed a few couples engaged in routines that seemed a bit more sophisticated than the usual gyrations and grinding one would expect at the average club, though there was plenty of that too.

Before he could take in much more he found himself looking at the glass Chris was now holding up in front of his face.

He blinked in slight surprise before reaching up to take the glass from his friend, downing the whole thing in one go, much to the other man’s amusement.

“I’m going to need more than that if you actually expect me to relax tonight,” Victor declared.

“Of course, mon ami,” Chris replied, lifting up a second identical drink, “That’s why I got you two.”

Victor just shook his head and smiled as they exchanged glasses, Chris putting the empty glass back on the bar and retrieving his own drink. After all their years of friendship, Victor had to admit his friend really did know him very well. They may not see each other that much these days, but for years they’d been practically inseparable.

“Of course, the next round is on you,” Chris added with a wink as he returned lifting his glass to clink it against Victor’s.

“So we’re here, now what?” Victor asked.

“It _is_ a club. I remember you used to cut quite the figure out on the dance floor,” Chris answered, a glint in his eye.

“That was a long time ago,” Victor said, taking a sip from his drink and avoiding Chris’s eyes.

“You make it sound like you’ve aged ten years in the last two which, despite your over-zealous work ethic, is hardly the case. You used to live for this kind of thing, just relax a little and I’m sure it’ll all come back to you.”

“I hardly need a reminder,” he said, remembering all too well the many nights out he’d enjoyed in the past, but that was the past.

Looking back it really did feel like that was all another life. He’d felt like a whole different person back then. In a way it was what got him into his current line of work but it was hard to recognize any connection anymore.

“Come on, finish your drink and join me on the dance floor. I’m sure you’ll remember your old self in no time, maybe you’ll even find someone to sweep you off your feet for a song or two,” Chris winked again, causing Victor to just laugh at his friend.

“You go ahead for now, perhaps I’ll join you later, I think I need a couple more drinks in me first.”

“You’d better,” Chris hit him lightly on the shoulder before emptying his glass and heading out onto the dance floor with a sway to his hips that was already matching the beat of the music.

Victor went back to the bar to get himself another drink. He didn’t want to waste the evening now that he was here but just couldn’t seem to get himself to relax. The truth was, he didn’t really want to remember the past the way Chris suggested he should. There were reasons he’d left that life behind, though he’d never really told Chris about any of that. Perhaps he should have, it had just been easier at the time to say it was because he was too busy and just leave it at that.

This environment used to energize him and fill him with life, but for some reason the lights and music just made him feel strangely disassociated from everything now. It almost didn’t even feel real. He wished he could just let go and feel the music the way he used to, but it felt like there was a wall between him and that kind of freedom. He took another large gulp of the drink in his hand, hoping that somehow the alcohol could bring him back to that person he once was, the one that could find so much satisfaction in nights out like this. His old self would have loved this, but that person was gone now.

He walked back out among the mingling people, hardly seeing them, as lost in his own world as they were in theirs. He found a place where he could get a decent view of the dance floor and searched among the rhythmic bodies for his friend.

His eyes moved from couple to couple, dancer to dancer, following the movements of each for a while before his eyes moved on. He could tell who had little to no experience dancing, who was dancing with their partner for the first time, who had been drinking a lot or not, all by the way they moved within the space around them. He didn’t have a lot of formal dance training himself, but he’d been in enough clubs and had the chance to work around quite a few professional dancers in his line of work that he knew what he was looking at.

Finally his eyes alighted on one particular dancer that clearly stood out from the others. Training was obvious in the control of every movement but as he continued watching he felt like he was able to actually feel the music for the first time since they’d walked through the door.

He could see every beat, every note in the body of this dancer. Every movement felt at one with the music, nothing wasted and never a hesitation. It felt as if either the dancer was making the music themselves, their body the instrument creating every sound, or the music was making them, creating this enchanting figure out of each note and guiding them into the perfect shape with every beat.

He’d never seen anything quite like this, but just witnessing it began to bring back what had been missing in the memories his mind had traced at the start of the evening. He finally remembered how it used to feel to be on that dance floor once upon a time, the power of the rhythms that used to guide his own body, never this perfectly, but the feeling had still been perfect.

For the first time since entering the club he began to actually feel the beat start to get under his skin, started to feel a little of the old pull the music once had on him and the whole time his eyes were locked on this one dancing figure, ignoring every other person on that floor, his intention to find Chris completely forgotten.

However, as the song changed he could see a shift in the people in the vicinity of the object of his current focus. Some people left the floor while others paused for a breath across the shift in beat, but his mesmerizing dancer continued to on, following the transition as the DJ wove in the new rhythms as if he already new what was coming. As the new song picked up into something a little more fast paced he finally did catch sight of his friend, now closing in on his dancer.

When the dancer noticed Chris a couple seconds later he saw a smile of recognition before the space between them closed and they began to dance together, turning and gliding through the space in tandem.

_Did Chris know the dancer? Were they friends? Acquaintances? Chris had a boyfriend so it wasn’t more, right? Could he introduce Victor?_

The questions crowded into his head but were only vaguely acknowledged as he still couldn’t pull his eyes away from the dancing couple.

Chris was a fantastic dancer, of course, but even he really couldn’t compare to his current partner. Victor was pretty sure he’d never be able to match up to this either, especially not these days, but if it got him the chance to be a little nearer to this human embodiment of music, he’d definitely try.

He did look away then, shutting his eyes and shaking his head at the ridiculous thoughts. When did his brain decide to start spouting such ridiculous things as if he were some teenager with a crush? He hadn’t even gotten a good look at the dancing figure yet. As his eyes returned to the pair, still in constant motion, the flash of multicolored lights reflected off of hair and skin so that the only thing he could tell with reasonable certainty about the mystery dancer, with their arm around Chris’s waist, was that it was likely a man, hair short and body lithe but still something distinctly masculine about it and they way it moved. He wished he could get a closer look. He was tempted to get on that dance floor himself just to do so.

As he contemplated what he should do the music began to shift again and the two dancers finished off the spontaneous routine they had going, smiling and laughing, though the mystery dancer now had his back to Victor. Chris however looked up and saw Victor across from where he was now standing and nodded slightly in acknowledgement before returning his attention to the man in front of him, giving a friendly hit against his shoulder as if they were old friends.

Chris turned away then and the two figures moved across the dance floor, leaving the space behind them to fill with new dancers.

As soon as Victor realized they were heading towards the bar he left his own position in order to meet them there.

He found them a short distance from the bar, a mess of blond curls standing next to the sleek raven locks of the shorter mystery dancer. As he got closer he felt unexpected nerves rise up in him but pushed them back down as he stepped up next to his friend with a hearty thump to his back, “You looked good out there, have fun?” he asked, chancing a quick glance to the other man.

Of course what was meant to be a glance quickly extended as he finally took in the man from up close.

He was clearly asian of some kind, with a bone structure that seemed both delicate and strong at the same time, the lights reflecting off of cheekbones and jaw in a way that accentuated both features. He had a smaller build, but from what Victor could see beneath the outline of well fitted shirt and pants, from the slim hips to the ridges of clavicle that peaked out from the unbuttoned collar, it was well honed, truly a dancer’s body.

A moment later soft brown eyes turned up to meet his with a smile, enhanced by the flush of his earlier exertions on the dance floor.

Whatever Victor had planned to say or do next seemed to be lost to those eyes until a sudden jab in his arm had him turning quickly back to look at Chris.

“Yes, as a matter of fact,” he said in answer to Victor’s earlier question, a rather smug look on his face, “Yuuri here is one of the best dancer’s I’ve had the pleasure of meeting, and dancing with him is always an honor.”

Victor looked back to the newly identified mystery dancer who seemed to be flushed for a completely different reason as he shook his head but still had a bright smile on his face, “I'm afraid Chris is exaggerating, I'm really not all that, I just come here to let loose a little.”

“Well, you certainly caught my attention, you really can move,“ Victor said quickly, smiling back, shaking off his previous speechlessness and hoping he didn't come across as too excited, but that smile was already reaching a close second to the man's dancing. "I'm Victor by the way, an old friend of Chris here."

He reached out a hand and Yuuri automatically met it, gripping it for a quick but firm shake, just enough time for Victor to appreciate the warmth in that touch.

"I'm Yuuri, nice to meet you."

“Victor, give me your wallet, I’ll get us some drinks,” Chris reached his hand out as Victor handed over the wallet, a quick wink as he took it in hand.

“I’ve got mine,” Yuuri said immediately after, handing a bill to Chris who took it without comment.

“You still drinking the same?” Chis asked, acknowledging Yuuri’s nod before heading to the bar.

Since Chris hadn’t said anything Victor decided not to either. He’d have been more than happy to buy Yuuri a drink but if he felt better paying for himself he wouldn’t argue.

“So, would I be right in guessing you’ve had some dance training?” Victor decided to ask instead, hoping to prompt a bit more conversation and get to know this already fascinating man a little better.

“Uh, some, I guess” the man named Yuuri answered, smile returning and a glint of something in his eye that sent Victor’s heart on a quiet rampage through his chest. What was this man doing to him?

“Well, training or no, the talent is obvious, you were the most captivating thing on that floor,” he smiled back at the man before him, doing his best to call on his long experience meeting new people and engaging them in pleasant conversation, charming them with bright smiles and light flattery. Of course in this case it was more than sincere, and it was taking everything he had to remain calm. Something about being faced with this person had him more nervous than he could remember being in a very long time.

He saw the young man’s eyes widen slightly but then that glint was back again, “Well, I’m pretty sure that’s only because you weren’t out there too,” he said before winking at him, actually _winking_.

Victor thought his heart might just stop right then and there, what was even happening to him right now?

He swallowed quickly though, not about to be outdone with words by this shining star of the dance floor.

He lowered his lids and looked straight into deep amber, “So what do you think would happen if we were out there together?”

He could have sworn he saw the other’s breath catch but it happened so quickly it could also have been a trick of the light.

“Hmmm,” Yuuri pressed his lips together, brows knitting, in a good imitation of serious thought, before lifting his eyes again, as if daring Victor to respond to his next words, “I’m not sure, there’s a chance the world might end.”

Victor had never thought he’d want the world to end, but if it meant sharing the dance floor with this fantastic creature he’s pretty sure he wouldn’t mind.

Before he can get a response out however, “Here you go.” Chris returns, reforming their little circle, or triangle was probably more accurate, …whatever. Victor was slightly annoyed at his friend’s return at that moment but hid it behind a quick ‘thanks’ before taking the proffered drink and swallowing half of it at once. Yuuri too took the shot offered him and downed it a second later.

“So, you here for a while tonight?” Chis asked looking at Yuuri.

“I’ve already been here a while, I’ll be heading out pretty soon I think, but first,” he looked back at Victor, “Would you care to see if we can destroy the world?”

Victor smiled wide before downing the rest of his drink and returning his eyes to Yuuri’s, ready to meet the challenge offered him, “Lead the way.”

They dropped their glasses off quickly at the bar before heading straight to the dance floor, not even glancing at Chris as they left him in their wake, smiling after them.

Victor was careful to stay close as he followed Yuuri onto the floor, not wanting to risk losing him in the crowd.

He didn’t see the hand that reached out to take his, this time to lead him as they weaved through the other dancers towards the center, but the contact shot through him, pulling his focus down to that single point of contact, so that he barely noticed the myriad of other people around them.

Victor can feel the beat now, as it pounds through his blood, heat rising with the new rhythm now weaving itself into the current song. All his focus is on the back leading him onward, the feel of that hand in his, holding firm to guide him. There is a thrumming buzz of energy working its way up to just under his skin and making him a little breathless. He'd like to claim it's just the alcohol but he's pretty sure he didn't drink enough to have him this far gone. The truth is he's intoxicated by the man he's with and they haven't even begun to dance yet.

Finally they reach the center of the dance floor just as a new song begins in earnest.

Yuuri lets his hand go and spins around to face Victor, hands lifting to his hair as his eyes lock on Victor's. Fingers run through the dark strands slowly as if he's pushing them back before continuing down to his neck and chest, hips already swaying with the beat rolling into his hands as they move down from his waist.

Victor takes it all in, feeling the pulse of the music begin to take over his own body in that familiar way he’d thought he’d long since given up. Without another thought he’s reaching for the man in front of him, pulling him in, fingers around that warm hand, drawing them both into the beat and sway of the ever demanding music that's filling the air and calling their bodies to respond.

Shining hair and eyes, so much closer now as their bodies begin to move in sync. Their eyes stay locked onto each other, watching the way the other moves, taking their cues off each other. One moves right, the other left, pulling apart and then back to some invisible center of gravity between them. A touch of hands here, a brush to back or shoulder as they tease their way around each other, feeling the other out, seeing how one responds to what the other brings.

Their smiles broaden as they continue to test this new bond of melody and rhythm. Victor’s body sings with every beat, and every touch between them feels like an explosion of silent harmony between the notes pulling them across this floor, though he hardly feels the surface beneath his feet.

The rhythm begins to shift again and with it the space between them closes further, that center of gravity gaining strength as the beat becomes something deeper, headier, primal notes that call Victor’s hands to reach out for his counterpoint again and again, lingering longer each time, to feel the heated skin beneath his touch, the shift of muscles beneath the skin. Hands on his waist, his back, holding him in turn as they move, now like one, never letting go, guiding each other through this dance both primal and exhilarating. Victor no longer knows where he ends and his partner begins, he only knows he could dance like this into eternity, into the stars and across galaxies, celestial bodies dancing to the music of the spheres.

A final, powerful beat pulses through them, before a new shift begins, but as that beat passes, they stay frozen in their final position, Victor bent back, Yuuri over him, close enough he can feel warm breath brush across his skin as he looks into rich amber eyes, and shivers just slightly at the sensation, feeling breathless, heart pounding, unwilling to look away.

Finally though, they straighten, though the fingertips still brushing along his hair and neck haven’t moved, and the arm he has around Yuuri still holds tight as they look at each other, trying to catch their breath.

“Would you care for another dance?” Victor asks, speaking close to the other’s ear so as to be heard above the music that has somehow continued on without them.

Yuuri blinks and finally pulls back, hand and eyes lowering, looking away with what appears to be sudden nervousness, but his body stays pressed close to Victor’s.

Victor lifts a hand to Yuuri’s chin, directing his eyes back, “Well?” Victor wants nothing in the world more than for him to say ‘Yes’.

“I, uh…” the young man says and blinks hard as if trying to clear his vision. “Um, I actually need to get going.”

Yuuri does pull away then and reluctantly Victor let’s him go, disappointed. The loss of contact leaves him feeling almost cold and lost amidst the noise and chaos that still surrounds them now as they make their way off the dance floor.

Victor continued to follow as Yuuri weaved through the people, determined to stay close as long as he could, aggravated by the people that threatened to get in his way, and expand the distance between them. A few seconds after they left the dance floor behind, Yuuri turned back to him and Victor felt his heart sink, knowing from the look in the other’s eyes that the night is essentially over.

Victor can see Yuuri’s mouth move but doesn’t quite catch the words, “Sorry?” he asks, leaning closer to the other man to get his ear closer.

“Thanks for the dance,” Yuuri says again, a little louder this time, breath ghosting past Victor’s ear with the words, “I had fun.”

Victor can help beaming at him, “I did too. I’d love to do it again sometime.”

“Oh. Um, well, I’m usually here on Fridays. If you come by again sometime, maybe we can.” He looks back up into Victor’s eyes but looks away again a second later pulling away, “Anyway, I should go. Have a good night!”

Without another word, and only a fleeting glance back Yuuri quickly disappears into the crowd of people that only seems to have gotten denser since they came in. He tries to follow the head of dark hair as it moves away, but too soon it’s lost.

“Wow, nice work Nikiforov,” Chris’s voice says teasingly, coming up behind him, “That guy never goes more than one dance with the same person.”

Victor gives up trying to catch a final glance of Yuuri and turns back to his friend, who's holding out a fresh drink for him. He takes he glass and swallows half of it at once, “What do you mean, that _was_ only one dance.”

“Well, you may not have stopped dancing in between but that was definitely two songs. I’ve never seen him do that, rumor is he kind of has a rule against it. Tonight was the third time I've danced with him in the six months since I met him. Believe me, he’s really good at maintaining his boundaries.”

Victor just stared at the other man, trying to understand what he was saying.

"Anybody else is lucky to get just one dance out of him, but you my friend, somehow you managed to get two."


	2. I could have danced all night

That night Yuuri dreamed of dancing.

This in itself wasn’t really unusual. He danced for a living after all, and then he went and did it some more in his free time. That it made it’s way into his unconscious on a regular basis was to be expected. But where his mind usually took him through various choreography, the anxiety of an upcoming performance, or even some new idea he was toying with, tonight it was something different.

This night’s dreams brought him the sensation of being held in strong arms as he moved; of shining silver hair and a brilliant smile as he held on in return. It felt more like flying than dancing, and his heart soared with the sensation. He loved dancing, had his entire life, but it had never felt quite like this before.

At the sound of his alarm he quickly grabbed the phone where it lay near his pillow, and hit snooze, determined to hold on to the dream for as long as possible. He wanted to remember this one, doubting he’d be so lucky as to have such a dream again.

He imagined the slightly fuzzy dream figure, the feeling of bodies pressed close, and felt a longing to pull himself even closer. A flash of memory and he saw the man’s face right in front of his, breath tickling Yuuri’s skin as he tried to catch his breath. If only his dream self had moved just a bit closer, closed that distance and kissed this perfect partner his mind had so generously supplied.

He tried to imagine it, tried to get his still half sleeping mind to dream up the image on command, but the effort only seemed to push the dream image further and further away, and push him closer to wakefulness.

Finally, as the alarm went off a second time, he sat up in defeat, accepting that the dream was over and it was time to return to reality.

He took stock of himself, slightly stiff throughout his body, and mouth a bit cottony. It wasn’t bad though and there was no headache, thankfully. There almost never was anymore. He’d long since learned the hard way exactly where his limits were. Waking up with no memory of what had happened after a night out had gotten old fast. When he drank too much he was more likely to do things he didn’t want himself doing, and despite not remembering, he usually found out what had happened anyway, which at times was so embarrassing he couldn’t even make himself leave his room for a couple days.

There were also those couple of times that had apparently become almost dangerous, and if Phichit hadn’t been there with him, could have led to more than just embarrassment. It was those times especially, that made him realize he needed to change, and learn to control his drinking more carefully.

To this end, he instituted the same level of discipline on himself that he did with both his training and his diet. As long as he set limits for himself, and followed them correctly, he could drink just enough to relax and gain the extra confidence he wanted, but still maintain both his control of the situation and memory of everything that might occur.

It had taken a little trial and error but with Phichit’s help he’d soon come up with a good balance. Though Phichit had always gotten a kick out of how crazy Yuuri could get sometimes, he was a good friend and agreed it wasn’t the healthiest approach to things. In the end, the results had benefitted both of them. Once Yuuri felt he was in control of himself and didn’t have to worry about waking up to disturbing revelations of what he may have done while too drunk to care, he was more willing to actually go out, without Phichit having to resort to begging.

Phichit wasn’t with him last night though. For about the last year or so, Friday’s were generally reserved for just himself to decompress and dance without thought, instead of focusing on choreography or presentation. He also didn’t want to think about keeping anyone else entertained, this was for him and he’d always found the best way to escape reality was on his own. Even though it was a crowded club, if he wasn’t worrying about anyone else having a good time, he could focus completely on the feeling of the music and just let go.

He picked up his phone again to look at the time. Just after nine on Saturday. It was earlier than he wanted to be up, but still later than he allowed himself during the week. Despite it being the weekend, he knew he couldn’t really slack off. He still needed to go for a run before meeting Phichit for lunch.

He stood up and headed for the bathroom. He was halfway through putting toothpaste on the brush when he froze.

He’d been running through the events of the previous night in his mind. It had been a good night, the DJ being one of his favorites, but it had been pretty uneventful. Then he remembered it getting near the end of the night, he was thinking about leaving soon before the crowd got too big or too drunk. Then that guy Chis had shown up.

He’d met the man at the club a few times. He seemed nice, and they’d built up a slight acquaintance.

It was the end of the night and he knew Chris was a pretty good dancer so he figured he might as well finish off with one final dance with the man. It had been fun and then they headed off the dance floor together. He chatted with Chris a bit until his friend had shown up, seemingly out of nowhere.

And this is where he almost dropped his toothbrush into the sink.

There in his memory was the bright smile and shining hair from his dream.

Now that he had a clear memory of the man’s face and not just a fuzzy dream image his pulse pretty much doubled instantly. The man had been absolutely gorgeous. Hair shining and reflecting the lights of the club, smile so bright it could blind anyone looking directly at it, and a pair of the most perfectly blue eyes, he could easily see himself dedicating his life to drowning in them.

He was certainly glad he’d been fairly drunk at the time. If they’d met under any other circumstances, he’s pretty sure he’d have just run. Instead he’d actually flirted and then postponed his planned departure to ask the man to dance.

And. They. Had. Danced.

It hadn’t been a dream after all, or at least not only a dream. Just the memory had his heart rate ramping up as he replayed it in his head, eyes closed as he leaned into the bathroom sink for support.

Normally staying would have been absolutely against the rules: when it was time to leave, it was time to leave. But he just couldn't resist the opportunity that was standing right before him, when else would he ever get a chance like that?

He hadn’t really expected much when heading out to the dance floor, he’d just wanted to get a little closer, flirt a little more, enjoy the rare opportunity to indulge that he rarely allowed himself with what had to be one of the most gorgeous men alive, but he'd gotten so much more than that. He had been surprised from the moment Victor had pulled him in and began to dance in harmony with his own movements.

Yuuri had been vaguely conscious that Victor was certainly not a professional dancer like him, but it really didn’t seem to matter because it quickly became clear that he could feel the music the way Yuuri did, and he could meet Yuuri step for step so that every move felt perfect.

Yuuri had often dreamed of having a partner that felt that natural. He’d tried often enough, dancing with people at the club or others from the studio he worked at when they went out together for a party or something, but it always left him kind of disappointed deep down. It was ultimately just more satisfying to dance by himself, hence another reason why he rarely had partners at the club these days.

He’d broken one of his cardinal rules and even gone for two songs with Victor, but really, it had been worth it. The thing was, it just felt too good to stop after only one song, he just needed a little more and let the music sweep him right into Victor’s arms for that second song, just this one time.

He remembered the end of their dance then, Victor looking at him, face so close, the way it had been in his dream, asking him for another dance.

He’d almost said yes, almost offered to dance the rest of the night away with him if he wanted. This is why he didn’t drink so much anymore though, to prevent such impulsive decisions.

It was just a couple of dances while he was drunk on alcohol and music, not a reason to disregard all the rules he’d set for himself. It could only end badly if he’d given in to such an impulse. If dancing longer had even gone half as well as it had up to that point, Yuuri’s pretty sure he’d have ended up getting attached, and then have to face the inevitable disappointment when Victor said thanks and goodbye at the end of it, never to be seen again.

A guy like Victor could dance with anyone, and probably had. Yuuri could only hope to be a good time for a single night before Victor would move on to another partner, another club. He wondered how many others had the privilege of being his partner once Yuuri’d left.

No, it was better this way. He’d allowed two songs at the end of the night, it would be a beautiful memory of a particularly good night out, and he could accept that and move on.

He lifted his toothbrush back up and put it in his mouth to begin his preparations for the day.

He also remembered telling Victor he was usually at the club on Fridays, after the suggestion of possibly dancing again. He imagined the idea of Victor returning, of them dancing again. Would he break the rules and accept another dance with the man again so soon? He considered the matter for a second and then decided it wasn’t worth worrying about, there was no way Victor would come back, not for him.

 

* * *

 

Yuuri had left the club and Chris was back by Victor’s side and it was all Victor could do not to simply bombard his friend with questions.

Okay, that’s not entirely true, he _did_ bombard Chris with an extensive list of questions, most of which got lost to the pounding music that was still playing all around them.

It quickly became clear that the current location was not going to be conducive to getting the answers he wanted so a few minutes later he was dragging his friend back out of the club with the intention of finding some 24hr restaurant where they could talk.

A short time later they were sitting at a table in the nearly empty restaurant, a couple cups of coffee in front of them.

“Chris, you have to tell me everything you know about him.”

Chris smiled and chuckled at him, “I had a feeling you’d like him, though I wasn’t expecting quite this reaction.”

“Chris, he was amazing, the way he moves… dancing with him was like… was like…” he trailed off trying to find the words for what he wanted to express. “I think that’s exactly what I was looking for all those nights when I used to go out al the time.”

Chris just raised an eyebrow at this, the expression on Victor’s face surprisingly wistful.

“I have to see him again! But you know him, right? You have to tell me everything.”

Chris just laughed and shook his head at how excited his friend was getting. It was a relief actually, it had been far too long since he’d seen Victor get anywhere near this excited about anything, so he was willing to help his friend out as much as he was able.

“You know, I don’t _actually_ know him all that well, right? I’ve met him at the club a number of times and we’ve danced on occasion, but he’s a really private person and doesn’t talk about himself all that much.” He paused and looked at Victor, who was listening attentively. He tried to remember what he could of Yuuri. “Apparently he comes to the club to blow off steam at the end of the week. I’m pretty sure he dances professionally, but where or what kind of dance, I have no idea, could be anything from what I can tell. I think he arrives relatively early in the evening, maybe eight or nine, drinks a few shots, usually tequila, and dances till around midnight. In fact, I’m pretty sure he was about to leave when you showed up.”

Victor just smiled at this news, and Chris continued, “He never lets anyone buy him a drink and rarely dances with anyone. If he does accept a partner, it’s never for more than one dance. Plenty have tried to get two, and utterly failed, including yours truly.”

Victor still had his eyes trained on Chris expectantly.

“That’s really all I know, the man is a complete mystery. Half of what I know is from talking to other regulars. He’s become a bit of a legend actually and there’s no shortage of people who would love to know more.”

Victor appeared thoughtful now, staring out past Chris for several moments.

“Hmmm, I guess I have to go back next Friday then.”

Chris raised both eyebrows at that, “You realized he probably won’t dance with you again so soon. I mean, you already managed the impossible, but I wouldn’t get my expectations too high if I were you.”

“Well, he seemed okay with the idea before he left,” Victor answered, undeterred, “He’s the one who told me he’s usually there Fridays and, it wasn’t quite an invitation, but he seemed interested in doing it again sometime.”

“Well, my friend, I wish you luck. You are in uncharted territory. Just be careful and try not to get your hopes too high. You deserve to have a good time, but I’d hate to see you get hurt.”

 

 

It was late by the time Victor got home, or early, depending how you looked at it.

Though the excitement from the evening, and a couple cups of coffee had done much to bolster his energy reserves, he was starting to feel the effects of the long day and night.

He and Chis had stayed at the restaurant a while longer while Victor tried to pick Chris’s brains about any other details on Yuuri, but it turned out Chris hadn’t been lying when he said he didn’t know much.

He thought back on the night again knew that that one dance was exactly what he’d been searching for the entire time he’d frequented clubs in his youth. He’d never realized it at the time, but now he’s sure that the reason he’d gone from partner to partner so often was because he was looking for the right one and that connection that just kind of clicked and made every move feel right. It wasn’t necessarily anything romantic, or even sexual, though for him dancing with someone always felt intimate, which is probably why he went home with so many partners back then. He’d also be lying if he said that he didn’t think Yuuri was _quite_ attractive. Even not having seen him dance, Victor would be sorely tempted to ask for his number.

He’d loved dancing as a child but his parents didn’t really think much of it and had only let him take classes for a couple of years before deciding to push him into more ‘practical’ pursuits. He’d tried to keep dancing when he could, turning up his stereo when no one was home and dancing through the hall and the small space of his room. But that was always the problem, dancing required space, at least the kind he wanted to do, and it just wasn’t available. His family wasn’t rich and their house tended to be on the cramped/cluttered side of things. They were also strict and wouldn’t allow him to go anywhere on his own that might have offered more space to practice.

Still, he did what he could, imagining the dancing he would do as he listened to his headphones, dreaming of the space to do it.

When he was old enough to move out of his parent’s house, away from their strict rules and expectations, and was finally free to direct his own actions and figure out his own life, that’s when he’d started hitting the clubs.

Years of dancing in small spaces made it a familiar situation. He’d get lost in the music and the feeling of all the other people dancing around him. He often had partners, enjoying the chance to share the beat and rhythm. He enjoyed a significant number of hookups as a result too.

After a while though, it all began to lose it’s appeal, had begun to get repetitive. He’d dance the night away, spend the night with some other dancing figure, high off the music and a little too much alcohol, rinse and repeat.

The luster of defying his upbringing eventually wore off, though perhaps it was surprising how long it did manage to last. But no matter what, in the end, no person he danced with, ever stood out. He realized what he was really looking for in all those nights out was some kind of connection.

In so many of his dancing daydreams, he’d had a partner, someone who felt the music the way he did. Someone with whom dancing was communication all on it’s own. Dancing had become something intimate and special in his mind but in reality it had become something cheap and empty. So, one day, he just stopped going. He just couldn’t stand the thought of another stranger who’s face he wouldn’t remember in a weeks’ time even touching him, much less trying to dance with bodies pressed close to share a beat that did nothing to make them any less strangers.

When he danced with Yuuri, it had felt like all the dances of his early daydreams, eyes closed, music in his ears, as he imagined the perfect dance with the perfect partner, except, none of those dreams actually came close to what it had felt like with Yuuri. That had been real, real hands on his body, a real body in his arms. They’d moved like they both knew what the other wanted and what the music demanded, he could have danced with Yuuri all night, and all Victor could think now was how much he wanted that again.

In fact, the one thing in all the world he was sure of right then, was that he had to dance with Yuuri again. He had to be sure it wasn’t just some kind of fluke, that they really did work together that well.

His work and everything else suddenly seemed so unimportant next to this. He didn’t care what he had to do, he would make sure his schedule was free next Friday night, and every Friday thereafter if need be, because he was determined to dance with Yuuri again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what do you think? Let me know if you're liking this fic so far.  
> Any guesses as to what Victor's job is?
> 
> Anyway, thank you for reading! Have a great day!!


	3. Rules were made for breaking

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally got the next chapter done.  
> I had fun writing it, I hope you will enjoy reading!!

The week had been busy, but not unusually so, so Yuuri is feeling pretty good by the time he leaves the studio late Friday afternoon. He gets an early dinner with some of the other dancers before finally heading home.

He’s pretty sure the weekend ahead is going to be fairly slow as well. Things will definitely pick up the next month, when some new classes would be starting and the planning for the fall exhibition recital would also get started. For the next couple weeks though, he could take it relatively easy.

He briefly considers skipping the club tonight in favor of vegging on the sofa for the evening. He bets Phichit would be willing to come over, they could whip up some kind of sugar free snacks to binge on, and watch action movies until they pass out in front of the tv, just like they'd done so often when they were still roommates.

Sometimes he misses those days, but he does enjoy having his own space that he can hole up in and not have to worry about any disturbances. They'd decided to try out living in separate apartments when various aspects of their work and personal lives began to clash. It didn't seem like it would be that big of a deal at first but as little things began to spark more petty arguments than either of them liked they decided to try having their own separate space, since it wasn't like they couldn't afford their own places now. So they went apartment hunting together, found an area convenient for both and got apartments just a few units down from each other. They still spend a significant amount of time together at one or the other's place, but he's grown to appreciate having an apartment he can call his own.

Yeah, Phichit would surely be happy to spend the evening together, but the fact is, they already have plans for most of Saturday that will likely include snacks and movie marathons anyway. So maybe something else?

Yuuri stops what he's doing for a moment and tries to think of why he’s suddenly seriously considering skipping his club night, something he always looks forward to, his one special indulgence at the end of every week that he usually plans other things around. If he decides to skip it, Phichit will definitely ask why, and he doesn’t want to try to come up with some lame excuse that he knows his friend will never buy anyway. He might not even get to go next month if things get too busy so he should really take advantage of the chance while he can.

But all week long, the memory of silver hair and blue eyes, of firm muscle under his fingers, of strong hands gripping his body, all of these sensations heightened by the music and beat that surrounded and filled them both, these memories have just been springing to his mind unbidden at random points throughout each day, and he’s had to try to force himself not to think about the club at all.

Thinking about it again now sends an involuntary shiver through him.

He'd thought the memory would fade by now, but somehow it only seems to have intensified. There is also this little tiny part of him that worries Victor might actually come back to the club tonight.

He shakes the thought out of his head with determination. He's being ridiculous and he is definitely going to the club tonight to enjoy himself like he always does and prove to that anxious little voice that the man he danced with a week ago is absolutely not about to just show up again, solely to dance with Yuuri, and if he does, Yuuri can always just evade the offer as he’s always done with those looking for more than than he’s willing to offer, because he is absolutely not going to break any more of his own rules tonight.

Once resolved, he proceeds with his preparations for the night out, selecting an appropriate outfit, something simple but flattering, as well as easy to move in, then he slicks back his hair and swaps his glasses for contacts. He knows he's nothing special, but it's a look that at least lets him feel not quite so out of place in a dance club, let’s him blend in and just be one out of all the dancing throng. At the last second he grabs the bottle of cologne he usually saves for the rare special occasion, and applies some of that as well for an extra boost to his confidence.

Once he's satisfied with his appearance for the evening he grabs his wallet and keys and heads out to face the night.

It only takes him about fifteen minutes to get to the club, traffic isn't too bad and somehow he catches only green lights. _Must be a sign that the night is going my way._ Of course he's not the kind of person to believe in ‘signs’, but who doesn't appreciate accommodating street signals?

He doesn't normally drive to the club, but second guessing his plans made him run late, so he didn't want to waste any more of the evening waiting for a taxi to pick him up. It's fine though, he can either get a taxi or Phichit to pick him up later. He’s sure Phichit will drive him to get his car in the morning, a favor they often perform for each other when either of them drive to go out and no one is in a condition to drive back.

Arriving at the club, he parks and heads directly inside. Once beyond the threshold he lets the sound of the music that washes over him and wrap around him in its comforting familiarity.

He looks around as he makes his way to the bar, taking in the scene and the people filling it. Black, brown, red, blond, pink, blue, green, but no flash of silver to be seen among the myriad heads filling the space.

He lets out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.

Feeling foolish for expecting anything different, he moves quickly towards his objective and places his usual order at the bar. He downs the drinks and orders again. He has no interest in getting wasted, another rule he is determined to continue following, but he feels the need to work up a good buzz fast. He wants to relax, he wants to let go as usual, and forget about last week, because remembering that isn't going to do him any favors.

He swallows the last of his drinks quickly then heads straight out to the dance floor, hoping to lose the rest of his worries in movement and music.

 

* * *

 

All through the week, Victor has hardly been able to think of anything but the previous Friday night. His work has kept him busy as always, but in any free moments he'd caught himself thinking back to those warm brown eyes, a body that seemed to be made of music, and how good he had felt sharing those rhythms with the other man. His craving to experience it all again just grew more with each day that passed.

Friday night could not come fast enough, as far as he was concerned. He'd had to juggle and shift a few things so that he could guarantee a free evening again that week, but if he can score even one more dance with Yuuri, it will absolutely be worth it.

He takes a bit more time getting ready this time too. His appearance last time certainly wasn't lacking, per se, he knows he looks good as a general rule, he just hadn't really been trying very hard at the time, not seeing much point in spending the extra effort. He'd had no reason to impress Chris after all. This week though, he wants to be his best, he _wants_ to impress Yuuri.

He debates on clothes for a while. He loves how his favorite pair of dark blue jeans look on him, they fit perfectly, but he also knows that they really won't be the best for dancing and he really hopes there will be dancing. He finally decides on some light grey pants and a black button-down, untucked, with the sleeves rolled up. He gets his hair to do that perfect "stylishly messy" thing he'd perfected years ago but hasn't had need for recently, adding just a bit of aftershave at the end.

**_From Victor_ **

_Wish me luck_

**_From Chris_ **

_So you're going tonight then? Good luck, may you succeed where all before you have failed, including yours truly_

**_From Chris_ **

_and you better tell me everything after._

**_From Chris_ **

_if you need a shoulder to cry on, you can always count on me._

**_From Victor_ **

_I'm sure it will be fine_

**_From Victor_ **

_I mean, he did invite me back right?_

**_From Victor_ **

_Oh god Chris what if he decides he actually hated me and never goes back to that club again?_

**_From Victor_ **

_He seemed so nice though, he wouldn't do that would he?_

**_From Chris_ **

_calm down Victor. I’m sure he’ll be there._

**_From Victor_ **

_Ok. you’re right, you’re right…_

**_From Victor_ **

_I’m just so nervous. especially after what you told me. I just want to dance with him again._

**_From Chris_ **

_For what it’s worth, I really hope you get to. Good luck!!!_

**_From Victor_ **

_Thanks Chris_

**_From Victor_ **

_I’ll let you know how it goes_

 

He ends up running a little later than he'd wanted to be when he finally heads out but he knows it should still be early enough that he can catch Yuuri if he’s there.

It feels strange walking back up to the club, alone this time, like a weird sort of deja vous. Chris had called ahead for him so he knows he won't have any trouble getting in right away. Stepping through the entrance feels completely different this time though, he's buzzing with anticipation, eager to step out into the club's main area, eager to seek out the reason for him being back here again.

The music surrounds him in an instant, adding to the tension he can feel beneath his skin. He looks around quickly before heading to the bar. He doesn't want to drink much tonight, but he's realizing he's a lot more nervous than he'd anticipated being. He’d told Chris he was nervous, but actually being here now, on his own and about to put himself out there for the first time in ages… He hopes a drink or two will help him relax a little before he starts looking for Yuuri.

He downs one drink and takes another with him as he moves away from the bar to begin his search. It seems busier this week and he's not sure how long it's going to take to find Yuuri in this crowd. And once he finds the man, he still has no idea how he's going to approach him. After thinking about everything Chris had told him, he's pretty sure the direct approach is more likely to scare Yuuri off than anything else, or at least lower any chance he might have of actually getting a second dance. Yuuri had invited him back, but there was always the chance he had reconsidered since then.

He wanders through the crowd, carefully trying to avoid bumping into anyone, hoping to find a good place where he can see the dance floor. If Yuuri is going to be anywhere, he'll surely be there at some point tonight, so it seems the best place to start looking.

Before he can get much closer to his intended destination, however, he suddenly feels a pull on his wrist, forcing him to turn back in the direction he'd just come.

He's already glaring as he turns to face whoever it is that has presumed to grab at him, likely someone who'd had a few too many and now wants some company, but what meets his eyes instead are the very same brown eyes that have been haunting him the entire week and his expression immediately changes to one of surprise.

"Victor, you came!" Yuuri smiles up at him, still gripping him tightly by the wrist.

The smile on those lips and in those eyes just seem to light up Victor's world as their full effect is directed right at him.

He feels his own mouth reflect the happy visage before him now, unable to contain his relief at finding the man, or rather, the fact that Yuuri seems to have found him and is clearly happy to see him. Victor can hardly believe it’s going so amazing well already. Clearly, his decision to come back had been the right one, "Of course I did, I would never pass up another chance to dance with you."

He can see the blush rise to the other man's cheeks, even in irregular club lighting, but the smile brightens even more.

"I'm glad you did," Yuuri says as he's jostled slightly from behind, forcing him to shift into Victor's space. "I really liked dancing with you last time."

The hand that had been holding Victor's wrist now lets go to slide up his forearm instead, and Victor feels his pulse double at the sensation.

He reaches his other hand out to pull Yuuri in by the waist until their bodies are almost touching. He leans in close, his ear, "Will you dance with me again, Yuuri?"

He pulls back slightly to see Yuuri's face, waiting for a response.

To his surprise, Yuuri has a look of thoughtful concentration on his face as he looks directly at Victor, then to the dance floor, then back to Victor.

Finally he leaned back in, bringing mouth so close to Victor's ear, he can feel the soft brush of lips against it.

"I'll dance with you, but there's one rule: you only get one dance."

Victor feels his face fall and disappointment starts to settle over him, though he tries to fight it off, at least he'll get to dance with the man at all.

But Yuuri isn't finished yet.

"So that means we can't stop dancing, as soon as we stop, it counts as one."

It takes a few moments for Victor to register what Yuuri's words mean. He pulls his head back, looking into Yuuri's eyes for comfirmation and sees a smile there.

Yuuri leans in again, "Promise you won't stop dancing."

"I won't stop until you do," he confirms, directly into Yuuri's ear in return.

They pull back again and Victor feels the loss of Yuuri's proximity, but then Yuuri takes his hand in his, fingers twining together automatically as Yuuri leads them both to the dance floor. Victor barely manages to drop off his glass along the way and soon they are weaving between the myriad of dancing bodies, Yuuri clearly aiming for the center of crowd.

They reach their destination and stand facing each other, just far enough apart so that they can meet the other's eyes comfortably.

Victor takes in a deep breath and lets the music start to sink in, the beat beginning that steady shift as the song begins to change. He watches Yuuri, and it feels like he can almost see the transformation as he too becomes one with the music.

He can feel his heart beat in anticipation and he's determined to dance with Yuuri for as long as he can tonight. He takes another breath. He isn't sure what the signal is, perhaps it's the flash in Yuuri's eyes, perhaps it's the beat as the new song starts in earnest, but at the same moment they begin to dance.

 

 

Yuuri is fire, and ice, and electricity, and the wind, and the waves, and whatever else the music demands of him, and Victor follows in perfect sync, becoming whatever Yuuri needs so that they become one dancer in two parts in this extended ‘single’ dance that pulls them through and around the crowd that they barely acknowledge and yet never seem to come in contact with. Who knows if the people around them are making space, or if they are just finding all the spaces between the ever shifting sea of bodies.

Their own bodies are in constant motion, determined to keep the dance going. They pull apart for a moment only to come pulling back into that center of gravity between them that only seems to have gotten stronger during the intervening week.

Every touch is electric between them. Hands in hands, on shoulders and back and waist, holding on or sliding across hot skin and sweat damp fabric. The sheen of sweat across Yuuri's brow, down his neck and across the exposed V where his brilliant blue shirt is unbuttoned. Victor is captivated by all of it, swept away by every movement, every sensation, time lost to the beat and sway and all that is Yuuri.

He has no idea how long they dance, but eventually they begin to tire. They find themselves at the edge of the dance floor now, doing little more than swaying, arms around each other, exhaustion obvious in both of them.

Victor pulls Yuuri in even closer, "I wish I could dance with you all night, _solnyshko_ , but I think our legs aren't going to hold out much longer," he says in the other man's ear.

They sway slightly, two, three, four more times, before they settle into stillness, bodies still pressed close in silent agreement that their dance has come to an end for the night. Victor breathes in the other man’s presence, not yet wanting to contemplate the inevitable need to pull away. He smells of sweat and something softly woodsy with a hint of sharp spice that he would be content to continue breathing in for another hour just standing there if it weren’t for his treacherous legs, which are threatening to turn to jelly soon.

They do stay like that for a few more extended moments before they pull back slightly, eyes meeting. Victor pulls back further but catches hold of Yuuri's hand and leads them off the dance floor and back to an area a little further away from all the noise and activity.

It's a little quieter here and they turn to face each other, fingers still intertwined. Victor can't stop himself from lifting a hand and running his fingers along the side of Yuuri's face, taking in the now messy hair and the flushed glow on his skin. His breath catches as Yuuri leans just a little into his touch, and the grip on his other hand tightens slightly too.

"You were beautiful out there, _solnyshko_.”

Yuuri's brow crinkles slightly, "What does that mean?" His voice is too soft to really hear in the noisy club, but Victor can read the words on his lips clearly enough.

Victor smiles, "It means 'sun'. There's nothing that shines brighter than you when you dance."

He can see the flush deepen further and his smile only widens to see it. After the energized confidence of the dance floor, it is something unique and special to see this side of Yuuri now, something shy and uncertain in him that only makes Victor want to pull him close and never let go.

There are a few moments of silence and Yuuri looks like he's about to say something when he suddenly jumps slightly, before pulling away from Victor's still lingering hand on his face, pulling his phone out of his pocket. The light of the screen illuminates his face as he clearly reads whatever message he just received before looking up to meet Victor's eyes again.

"Um, sorry, I need to go."

Victor forces back a pang of disappointment. "It's ok, do you need a ride? I brought my car and didn't drink much."

Yuuri's eyes widen in surprise, "Oh. Um, thank you, but actually my friend is here to pick me up. I asked him to come get me at midnight."

"Midnight, huh? Is he driving a pumpkin perchance?"

"Huh?" Yuuri looks at him in confusion for several seconds, before comprehension dawns and a small smile rises at the corners of his mouth. "I don't think so, but his favorite color _is_ orange, if that counts.”

"Shall I walk you out then?" Victor offers, still smiling, wanting to share the man's presence for as long as he can.

"No, you don't have to. You can stay. I'll be fine." The bashfulness he's been seeing in Yuuri the last few minutes is becoming more pronounced and Victor is finding it to be equally as appealing as the confident Yuuri of the dance floor.

“There’s really no reason for me to stay if you’re leaving,” he says, stroking Yuuri’s cheek once more and enjoying the way the other man’s eyelashes flutter half closed for a moment at the contact. “You’re the reason I came here tonight, after all.”

Yuuri's eyes widen at the declaration, "Really? ... But, why?"

Victor's surprised by how genuine Yuuri's confusion seems to be but he answers nonetheless, equally genuine, "Because dancing with you is amazing! I don't think I've ever enjoyed anything more."

Yuuri just stares at him for a moment, seemingly speechless, until his phone buzzes again. He looks at that instead, to read the new message, then back at Victor, a look of uncertainty on his face now.

It's clear the young man is uncomfortable and perhaps he had been a bit forward, considering what he's heard of the man. So he decides to just move on from the topic, and hopefully let Yuuri relax again. "Come on, I'll walk you out. We don't want your friend to worry."

Yuuri nods, mumbling a quick "thanks" as they head towards the exit. The fact that Yuuri is still holding Victor's hand is not lost on him, however.

The evening air is a welcome relief after the crowded club.

They walk a short distance out into the parking lot before Yuuri comes to a stop and turns to face Victor again.

"Um, so, my friend’s just over there."

Victor smiles, "I guess this is goodnight then. Thank you for the dance! Will you be here again next week?"

"Um, yeah, I think so."

"Will you save me a dance?"

Yuuri smiles again, another of those sweet bashful ones that are quickly becoming one of Victor's favorite things, "Ok, but just one."

"Deal," he beams back. "You'd better go. Have a safe trip home Yuuri, and good night!" He gives a final squeeze to Yuuri's hand and finally, reluctantly, lets go.

"Good night, Victor."

Victor watches as Yuuri walks over to the car waiting for him and climbs in before he starts to walk to his own car, keeping an eye on the other vehicle as it exits the parking lot and drives away.

It isn't until he's sitting behind his own driver's wheel that he realizes he'd forgotten to get Yuuri's number again.

 

* * *

 

Yuuri climbs into the passenger side of Phichit's car, ignoring the obvious, slidelong look his friend is giving him.

"Soooo," comes the unsurprising beginning to the inevitable interrogation.

If Yuuri had had any idea that the evening was going to turn out the way it did, he definitely would have called a taxi instead.

He tried not to even think about the possibility of him actually accepting a ride from Victor, that definitely would have broken the rules, despite the fact he'd never made one concerning such a circumstance.

"Did you have fun tonight?" Phichit asks in mock innocence.

He just shrugs in response, "I guess so," and stares out of the passenger side window.

"Who was your friend?"

"Um, just a guy I met there, he's a pretty good dancer, and nice, I guess."

"Nice, huh?"

Yuuri can hear the grin in Phichit's voice and does his best to ignore it, even as he feels the heat creep up to his ears.

"So, does this nice dancer have a name?"

"Victor," he answers, grateful for at least one question that's easy to answer.

"Victor. Ok. So how many dances was it?"

"Just one," he says quickly.

This is Phichit though. His friend of many years, and once roommate, who can practically read his thoughts at this point, so of course he can tell Yuuri is hiding something.

There's a long pause though and Yuuri resists the urge to squirm in his seat with nervousness as he waits for Phichit's next question that is inevitably coming. Why can't he just get it over with and stop torturing him?

"How many songs?"

Yuuri can't help flinching at the question. Only Phichit would be able to guess how he might cheat at his own rules and call him out on it.

"I don't know," he finally answered after several long seconds.

"How drunk were you?"

The tone of the question is neutral, without accusation but the words still hit Yuuri the wrong way and he spins around, anger rising at the implication in them, "I did not go past my limits, Phichit, I'm not stupid. I just liked dancing with him, okay?"

"Okay, okay, Yuuri, relax. I'm sorry, I know you're not stupid, it's just unusual. Can you tell me what happened?"

He was immediately sorry for his outburst. He’s tired and anxious about where this conversation might lead but it was no excuse to snap at his best friend.

It wasn't an unreasonable question, not with his past and the fact that it _really is_ unusual for him to behave this way these days. He can only imagine Phichit's surprise to see him coming out of the club with a strange man, still holding on to his hand fingers entwined like something much more intimate than they are. Then the way they'd kind of lingered and been reluctant to part… Part of him even still wishes he could have stayed with Victor longer. He'd really liked the way Victor had touched his face, it had been so gentle, and seeing Victor look at him, smiling. It was such a small thing, especially after all the contact they'd had while dancing, their hands had probably been over every part of the other's body within reach, and over the clothes of course, but somehow those soft touches were even more significant for their simplicity.

Perhaps he should have asked Phichit to pick him up a little later... But midnight was the ‘rule’, right?

There is still enough alcohol in his system that, for now, he really can't remember why he made such a rule, it seems pretty stupid at the moment. It will probably all come back to him in the morning though.

"So, what happened?"

The question startles him out of his thoughts and he remembers he's supposed to be trying to explain himself to his best friend.

"I don't know. I met him last week just before I left. He was a really good dancer so I accidentally danced two songs with him before coming home. I didn't expect him to be here tonight, but when he showed up, I was drunk enough that I thought it was a good idea to ask him to dance again. … I told him we could have just one dance, and if we didn't stop between songs it only counted as one, so we just kept going until we were too exhausted to continue. Then you messaged that you were here, and he walked me out."

It all comes out in a rush and though he says more than he originally intended, it's probably all things Phichit would have gotten out of him eventually anyway.

"Woah, woah, woah, wait. Yuuri, you're saying you met him last week, immediately started cheating on your own rules that you haven’t broken since you created them, and didn't tell me about it? As your best friend, I am truly hurt."

He can't help smiling at his friend's dramatic, and obviously fake, tone of hurt.

"It didn't seem that big of a deal at the time. It was one extra song at the end of the night with a gorgeous guy that could really dance and that I was sure I would never see again." He doesn’t mention that he hadn’t stopped thinking about Victor ever since that night, and judging by what happened tonight, had clearly _wanted_ to dance with him again.

Phichit has already gotten them back to his complex and is now turning them into a spot near Yuuri’s unit. Once he turns the car off he turns around to face Yuuri again, "But you did see him again."

"Yeah," Yuuri answers weakly, turning to look back out the window again.

"Come on," Phichit says, unbuckling his seatbelt, "Let's get inside and you can finish telling me about this guy inside."

They get out of the car and then take the stairs to Yuuri's second floor apartment.

Once inside, Yuuri goes straight to the sofa and falls back on a cushion, half reclining, and closes his eyes. He can feel Phichit sit down at the other end but he refuses to look at the other man, knowing it's going to be easier to talk if he doesn't have to see his friends reactions.

Yuuri knows Phichit will start asking questions again if he doesn't start talking soon, he could just wait and let Phichit pull out every last detail, but somehow he isn't in the mood, he just wants to get it done with.

"I didn't think he'd come back, even though he said he might. I didn't think I wanted him to anyway, he'd made it too easy for me to break a rule and I was scared. But then I saw him, and confident, drunk me just couldn't stay away, even still aware of the rules." He crunches up his eyes and covers half his face with his hands in embarrassment, "I just liked dancing with him so much, and he was so nice. The music just feels different with him and the dance just feels... complete. I just wanted more of that."

His words trail off into silence and Phichit doesn't respond right away. He feels so confused by his own admissions since he hadn't exactly been thinking things through when he'd actually made the decision to keep dancing with Victor.

"Is he going to go back again next week?" Phichit finally asked.

"I think so. He said he would. Asked me to save him a dance."

"Well, he really must be one heck of a dance partner. You usually complain anytime you decide to actually decide to try dancing with other people. The question is though, what you want to do from here. It seems pretty clear that he likes dancing with you too, probably just likes you, if the way he was looking at you and holding your hand is any clue. The question is if you like him enough to go back and dance with him again.

"I think it's pretty obvious what drunk Yuuri wants to do and I can make a good guess that sober Yuuri is going to claim to want exactly the opposite. Fortunately you still seem to be in that weird in between place where you're almost objective, so you ought to decide now what you want to do and I'll do what I can to support you either way."

Listening to Phichit always helps him make sense of things and he really can't argue with every point he’s brought up, but it’s a good question, and he’s right, he'd probably make the best decision right now while he is neither inebriated, nor overcome with his own anxieties.

He sits pondering the question for what feels like eternity and is probably only a minute or two, and Phichit knows him well enough to let him just think on his own at this point and remains silent.

He finally sits up and pulls his knees up into his chest, folding his arms on top and hiding half his face behind them. He takes a deep breath but doesn't look directly at Phichit, "I think I want to dance with him again. Maybe if I just give myself the chance to try this out a little more I can figure out what I really want. Maybe it’s just a short-term, kind of novel thing and I’ll get tired of it soon.”

He finally looks up an meets his friend's eyes which are watching him in contemplation. A moment later the thoughtful expression is replaced by a kind smile.

"That sounds like a good idea, Yuuri. Clearly some part of you is interested, and it doesn't hurt to at least explore the possibility a little, especially if he's as nice as you say he is. But just remember, this is your decision and I'm willing to bet you're going to be changing your tune in the morning. And I'm willing to take on the fully sober and anxious you to make this happen, and drag you to that club next week if I have to, so if you want to change your mind you'd better do it now."

Yuuri looks at his friend and knows he's serious. He also knows Phichit is right. Tomorrow he’s going to start second guessing everything and thinking all of it is a terrible idea. He’d already been considering not going tonight, and that was when he didn’t actually think Victor would show up, not that he’s pretty sure he will, it will be that much more nerve-wracking.

It’s really too bad the only way it seems he’s able to stay calm and mostly rational about things is for him to be exhausted and usually coming off a strong buzz. He just wishes he could learn to be like this all the time. Since that isn’t likely to happen anytime in this lifetime, he’s grateful he has a friend like Phichit that is so willing to support and help him like this, he really does trust his friend. He’d trust him with his life in a heartbeat.

“Ok,” he finally says with a resigned, but also determined, sigh, “I give you permission to do what you have to to get me to go to the club again next week, but I have one request: Will you come with me?”

Fridays have always been his thing for just himself since he started with it, so even though he’s gone clubbing with Phichit many times, this particular request is a first.

His answer comes in the form of a very exuberant hug, “Of course, Yuuri! I would love nothing more than to come along and help you decide if this ‘nice dancer’ you’ve snagged yourself is worthy of you!”

“Phichit, please don’t embarrass me and make this more awkward than it already is.” Forget morning, he is already second guessing this.

“Come on, Yuuri. What are best friends for?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!  
> I'd love to hear what you think, all kudos and comments are truly appreciated!
> 
> I hope you all have a great day!!


	4. Take a chance and dance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry it's taken so long to get this next chapter out! There has just been a lot of things going on and it has been hard to get things done. I plan to put more focus on this story now because I'm determined to finish it before I start anything else so the next update should be coming much sooner.
> 
> I hope you enjoy the chapter!

As expected, Yuuri wakes up with a headache and a lot of doubts.

However, at the start, neither are as bad as he’d feared they’d be. He was close to sober by the time he’d gone to bed anyway, and Phichit had made sure he had plenty of water, so the headache is only a slight dull ache behind his eyes. The doubts too, aren’t that bad. Sure, he’d agreed to meet Victor again next week, but it would probably just be the same as this week and Phichit would be there to offer support as well so really there’s nothing to worry too much about, right?

The next couple of days, he feels about the same, reasonably comfortable with the idea of meeting Victor again to the point of almost looking forward to it. By Tuesday, however, the worries start to increase, doubts creeping in and threatening with their insidious prospects. Each day after that becomes progressively worse, those fears and doubts rearing their ugly heads in an ever more insistent way, promising every sort of terrible outcome his mind is capable of creating.

Phichit is more than familiar with the workings of his anxiety and makes sure to spend time with Yuuri each night, taking him through the scenarios in his head and reminding Yuuri of all the reasons he’d decided to see Victor again. Phichit patiently does what he can to calm him down enough that he is able to at least sleep.

Work seems to be the only real relief, so during the day he throws himself into dancing and teaching. If he works hard enough, he can almost forget what Friday has in store. Almost.

By Thursday night, Phichit has already picked out an outfit, planned dinner before the club and arranged their transportation, with repeated assurances that Yuuri will be completely prepared and doesn’t have to worry about anything other than thoroughly sweeping Victor off his feet, which Phichit promised was pretty much guaranteed by now, based on what Yuuri had already told him about their previous meetings.

Yuuri appreciates Phichit’s efforts, but when he finally gets home from the studio on Friday, he is already a complete nervous wreck, and insists he absolutely cannot go to the club no matter what.

Phichit responds to this with a long suffering sigh as he sits down on the bed next to where Yuuri is sprawled, with his head buried under his pillow.

“Yuuri, I know you’re nervous, and we’ve already been through why it is definitely not going to be anywhere near as bad as you are afraid it will be, and why you will probably actually enjoy yourself a lot, at least a dozen times this week already. And then there’s how you gave me permission to get you there no matter what, so I’m fully prepared to drag you by your ankles if necessary,” he adds with a pat on Yuuri’s shoulder, “However, I’m pretty sure I can get you to do the right thing and go under your own power.”

Yuuri remains unresponsive, maybe if he does nothing, Phichit will give up and just go away. He knows his friend would never go that easy on him, but he can’t help hoping anyway.

“Yuuri, imagine if you were Victor right now,” he starts, setting his final plan in motion, “You are excited because the amazing and gorgeous guy who swept you away with his incredible charm and amazing dance moves has promised to dance with you again.”

If Yuuri weren’t so stubbornly determined to show no reaction, he’d be glaring at his best friend right about now. If anyone could be called amazing or gorgeous, it would be Victor, not himself.

“Imagine you go to the club, get a drink, and then begin to wait for this wonderful person to arrive,” Phichit continues, unaware of Yuuri’s mental glaring. “Every time the door opens you watch expectantly for this person to appear.”

To his annoyance, Yuuri can imagine this fairly easily. He can feel the anticipation that would be bubbling in his belly, the nervous excitement that could only be satisfied by seeing the person he was waiting for.

“The door opens again and again. And again and again you are disappointed that it isn’t the person you are waiting for. Where are they? The minutes continue to pass. The meeting time has come and gone and now you are starting to worry. Did something happen? Did he change his mind? Was it all a joke? You don’t even have his phone number to find out.”

This is even easier for Yuuri to imagine. It’s long been a huge fear of his and one that has often kept him from making plans in the first place. The idea of waiting for someone to show up and then they never do, too devastating to even consider, he prefers not to chance it.

Phichit still continues, “You stay there waiting for hours, hoping they show, maybe with a good story about the traffic or some mix up at the cleaner’s to explain away the horrible delay. But they never show, and eventually you leave, hurt and disappointed and forced to live with the mystery of not knowing why, for the rest of your life.”

Finally, Yuuri does push the pillow away to turn and glare at his friend. “Phichit! This is hardly helping! That’s exactly what I’m terrified of, and exactly why I don’t want to go! Why are you trying to torture me this way?”

Phichit just smiled at the outburst. “Yuuri, if you had never met Victor, would you be going to the club tonight?”

“Yes, of course. What does that have to do with anything?”

Phichit smiled even wider, “Then, for you, this is a normal Friday out, you’ll drink, you’ll dance, and this time you’ll have your best friend to enjoy it with you. But...” He paused dramatically here, “Victor is only going there for you. He is going to show up and if you don’t show like you said you would, he is going to go through everything I just described, your own worst nightmare. Do you really want to do that to him? You said he was nice, does he really deserve to be put through that? Are you willing to be the cause of that kind of suffering?”

Yuuri just stares at his friend for several long moments, letting the words sink in.

Phichit remains silent. He’d hoped he wasn’t going to have to resort to this, but perhaps it was for the best. Yuuri had a real tendency to get caught in his own head and not realize how his actions affected those around him. It usually wasn’t anything serious, so it wasn’t something Phichit generally brought up. Even now, he was doing this more for Yuuri’s sake than for some guy Phichit knew nothing about, aside from Yuuri’s insistence that he was very nice and a great dancer. Yuuri was constantly getting in the way of his own happiness and if this guy was even half of what slightly drunk Yuuri had insisted he was, this was something he wasn’t about to let his friend deny himself.

Phichit watches Yuuri and can almost hear the gears turning in his head, a look of serious concentration on his face as he stares at the comforter under him.

“I have to go, don’t I?” Yuuri murmurs softly to himself.

“I really think you should,” Phichit answers, causing the other to look up at him again. “If he doesn’t show, you haven’t lost anything, you still have your Friday nights and I’ll be there to make sure you relax and have fun. But I’m pretty sure he’s going to be there and if you decide you don’t want to see him again, you can at least tell him that or, more likely, you have another great time together and can dance away into the sunset and live happily ever after.”

Yuuri stays quiet, still seemingly lost in his own thoughts.

“Besides,” Phichit went on, “I think you owe it to yourself to see what happens. You don’t want to look back and regret not taking the chance. You really seemed to like this guy last week, don’t let yourself always wonder.”

Yuuri was still silent, but Phichit had run out of advice. He could only hope his words had had some effect and he’d actually be able to keep his promise to his friend and get him to that club.

“Ok,” Yuuri finally answered, a note of resignation in his voice, “bring me the clothes you picked out, I’ll go.”

It wasn’t quite the response Phichit had hoped for, far from enthusiastic, but at least it was a start. He just hoped that a couple of drinks and the appearance of this mysterious Victor would work to change that around.

 

* * *

 

Victor couldn’t help the nervous tapping of his thumbs on the steering wheel. If he thought he was nervous last week, he was so much worse this week, to which Chris could have easily attested after having to deal with all the nervous texts that had been sent his way.

“Who’d have thought a big shot like you, Mr. Always in Control, would be so completely overcome by some dancer at a club? Although I grant you, he is an extraordinary dancer with a killer body and gorgeous face. Perhaps The Great Victor Nikiforov has finally met his match!” Chris had teased repeatedly in response to Victor’s continuous enumeration of all of Yuuri’s assets.

The comments didn’t really help, but they were true. He couldn’t remember a time before that he’d ever been this worried about messing something up on the relationship front. He’d messed up often enough before, but somehow it never seemed to bother him so much, but this time he had this inexplicable feeling that he just had to get things right for once.

“Hey, he’s dancing with you, right?” Chris had asked and he’d confirmed. “Then just keep doing the same you’ve already been doing and you should be fine. Apparently something is working.”

“But we’ve really _only_ been dancing. I haven’t done anything else,” Victor said, more of a whine in his words than he’d ever admit to.

“Then keep dancing, just stop a little earlier so you hopefully have time for more than the three minutes of conversation you had last time. Oh, and don’t forget to get his number this time!”

Chris was right, of course. Yuuri obviously liked dancing and Victor loved dancing with Yuuri, so that really was the best place to start, wasn’t it? And things had gone well after their dance last time, right? They’d just run out of time. Maybe this time, with a better idea of what to expect he can work in a little more conversation and get to know his mysterious Yuuri a little better.

The club is already in full swing when Victor arrives. He’d wanted to arrive earlier this time but work kept him from getting there much before the time when he’d arrived last time.

He walked in and headed straight for the bar, eyes sweeping over the crowd, hoping to spot a familiar head of black.

His eyes return to the bar ahead of him when he feels sure he’s spotted his target.

He’s about to speed up his steps when he suddenly hesitates at the sight of another young man leaning over to whisper in the ear of the man he’d thought was Yuuri, a wide grin on the second man’s face.

Chris said Yuuri always came alone so he supposes he must have been mistaken about the first man, but a moment later the man turns around, a look of surprise in his beautiful brown eyes.

Victor’s body seems to move on its own because a moment later he is standing right in front of his Yuuri, eyes still locked on to the beautiful brown ones before him.

“You came,” Yuuri said, with apparent surprise.

“Of course I did solnyshko, I told you I would, didn’t I?” He raised a hand to brush his fingertips along Yuuri’s chin, tilting his face upward slightly.

Just being in the presence of this man was something amazing, he could feel the way his heart had immediately sped up the moment Yuuri had turned to him, and being this close, he can hardly breathe. He isn’t sure what is happening to himself, he just knows he has to try and see this through and find out where it is going to take him.

He can see the blush rising to Yuuri’s cheeks and feels a slight tremble beneath his fingertips.

“Are you alright, Yuuri? I’m sorry if I’m being too forward, I was just so happy to see you again.”

He starts to pull his hand away but then Yuuri’s hand shoots up to pull it back. Yuuri’s eyes widen suddenly, as if surprised by his own actions, but then he swallows, and speaks, “No. No, it’s okay. I’m happy to see you too.”

And then he graces Victor with that soft smile that he is sure could feed his soul for all eternity.

“What he isn’t telling you, is that he was so nervous a few hours ago that he almost didn’t come,” a second voice chimes in from beside them.

They both startle slightly at the interruption, eyes swiftly turning to the owner of the voice.

“Phichit!” Yuuri hisses pointedly at his friend who ignores him and holds out his hand to Victor.

“Phichit Chulanont, best friend of the dancer extraordinaire before you!” he announces.

Victor shakes the man’s hand, slightly stunned, “Um, Victor Nikiforov, nice to meet you.”

“Victor _Nikiforov?_ ” Phichit asks, as if the name somehow means something, before his eyes suddenly widen, “Yuuri, you mean _he’s_ the one you–“

“Yes, he’s the guy I’ve been dancing with,” Yuuri interrupts, a note of panic in his voice, “And I’m pretty sure I promised him another dance tonight, so if you’ll excuse us, we’ll be on the dance floor.” Without another moment’s hesitation Yuuri is taking Victor’s hand and pulling him away from his friend.

“Have fun,” Phichit calls after, with a wave and a smile that Yuuri would surely call mischievous if he had been bothering to look at his friend.

Victor waves back in return, a little confused as he’s pulled along behind Yuuri, with the feeling that he is somehow missing something.

Yuuri had been hoping to have a couple more drinks before Victor arrived, or at least before dancing, but he was not about to let Phichit say what he was about to in front of Victor himself. Perhaps it wasn’t such a great idea to have invited his friend along tonight after all.

A few moments after their sudden departure he feels Victor catch up and fall into step beside him, hand sliding around in his so that Yuuri almost thinks the other man is going to pull away, but as he turns to look over into those beautiful blue eyes, he feels the position shift just right so that their fingers slide between each other, interlinking in that intimate way Yuuri has always associated with lovers, and it makes his heart skip several beats to realize how Victor had done this deliberately.

However, Yuuri knows it’s really just his drunk self that Victor has been charmed by, that and the way they dance together. The still slightly sober part of Yuuri knows that Victor probably wouldn’t give his normal everyday self half a thought, but fortunately he has had enough to drink that the other side of him, the one with the confidence and all the right moves, is able to push that voice of sense aside and make the decision to just enjoy one more night of dancing with Victor. That’s what he’s here for after all.

Yuuri meets Victor’s eyes with a smile and continues to pull him towards the dance floor, squeezing into that interlocking hold they currently have on each other. He wants to dance again with this man, he wants to share the music and the rhythm again, while he has the chance, here, under the lights and surrounded by the pulse of energy that fills the club.

Just before they reach the dance floor, Yuuri feels a pull on his arm and turns toward Victor who pulls him in close, setting a hand on Yuuri’s hip and bringing his mouth close to his ear, a breath ghosting across his skin that triggers a shiver he can’t hold back.

“Is it the same rules as last time?” Victor asks, voice elevated to overcome the noise around them, yet somehow it sounds low and suggestive in Yuuri’s ear.

Yuuri smiles and leans in slightly to reach Victor’s ear, breathing in and savoring the heady scent of Victor’s cologne and skin before he answers, “No, we can take breaks if we need. I’m here to dance with you tonight.”

He shivers slightly again as the words leave his mouth, as the reality hits him that he isn’t even going to try to keep up the pretense of following his old rules, not tonight.

He almost moves forward even more, but catches himself. He isn’t sure if he wants to kiss Victor’s neck or bite his ear, but he’s just sober enough to be embarrassed by the impulse. He begins to pull back again but looking at Victor in the dim club light, his skin luminous, his eyes sparkling, a new idea hits him. Here, tonight, he has Victor’s full attention and that knowledge fills him with a new kind of energy.

His lips rise in a slightly mischievous smile, “I have a new rule though,” he says in a low and barely audible voice as he leans back in, lips almost brushing along Victors ear.

“Oh? What’s that?” Victor asks, not even trying to hide his curiosity.

“Don’t take your eyes off me.”

He leans back, looking into Victor’s eyes which lock onto his and again he feels that impulse to close the distance between them, to taste the man before him like some craving he can’t identify, but still he controls himself, shivering as Victor leans in, breath tickling his skin in such a way it sends his pulse through the roof.

“That’s hardly a rule, Yuuri, that’s a privilege. Especially when anything else would be impossible.”

Yuuri resists another shiver at the words that seem to roll through his ears and down just beneath his skin which is quickly becoming too hot.

He smiles as Victor finally pulls away and struggling to regain some composure, tugs on their still linked hands, leading Victor out onto the dance floor. That’s where they need to go, that’s where Yuuri will hold Victor’s attention for as long as he can.

Victor follows easily, and it isn’t long before they are back in the familiar space, surrounded by the mass of people all moving rhythmically around them and yet the space might as well be empty for all the attention either of them are willing to offer the faceless crowd.

Yuuri stops somewhere in the middle of the floor. He’s still facing away from Victor, but Victor can tell this is the spot he’s chosen for them.

Their hands release and moves up close so that he is only a few centimeters behind Yuuri. He settles both palms on top of Yuuri’s hips, pausing a moment to let himself sink into the beat and pulse as it works it’s way from under his skin down into his bones, then he slowly starts to slide his hands up Yuuri’s torso, feeling the slim but firm build hidden beneath the fabric of the soft black shirt Yuuri is wearing.

Yuuri begins to raise his arms up, in time with Victor’s steady movements, until his arms are raised over his head, Victor’s hands now sliding up their length until their hands meet again above their heads, fingers teasing in between each other for a moment, back to chest pressed close.

Victor takes a moment to breathe in the scent of Yuuri’s shampoo, letting his nose brush the soft hair ever so gently, before taking hold of those hands, turning the other man around in one swift movement and they begin to dance in earnest.

Sometimes, during the intervening weeks, Victor wonders if the dancing really was that good, or if it is all just his mind making it seem better in his memory simply because he finds Yuuri so amazing. Here on the dance floor with said partner for the third time, he knows it’s both. The dancing is better than any he has ever experienced in the past, but he’s also sure that no one but Yuuri could give him an experience like this.

He has no idea what they look like from the outside, he only knows how good it feels to be moving in sync with this raven-haired angel, who moves like living music and somehow manages to pull Victor along in his current.

Victor is lost in the man before him, in every move, every look, every breath and bead of sweat. He wants to pull Yuuri close and hold him tight forever, but he cannot bear to let the dance between them falter, even for a moment. Yuuri promised, they could take a break, but if he could, he would never wish to stop the dance.

Unfortunately, though the spirit is willing, his body is not really able to sustain this level of activity indefinitely. He can feel himself tiring and Yuuri seems to sense it as well because he begins to pull in closer, making their movements smaller and more intimate until they look like half the other couples in the throng around them, Yuuri’s arms wrapped around his neck, while his pull Yuuri in by the waist.

Victor isn’t quite sure how they ended up this close, almost nose to nose and his eyes lost in rich brown, the feel of warm breath across his exertion flushed skin, though now perhaps it isn’t just due to the exertion anymore, he thinks, as his heart continues to pound and his stomach gives a distinct flip at being so close to this man.

He has no idea whose idea it is first, who actually moves first, maybe both of them, but suddenly he feels Yuuri’s lips brushing against his own, soft and sweet, and suddenly he feels as though he’s just come out of the desert, parched and being offered water from the purest oasis spring. Perhaps Yuuri is feeling the same because they seem to be just as in sync in this new dance as they have been in every other.

Yuuri opens to him, and Victor breathes him in, as if he could take life directly through those lips, that tongue. The grip in his hair sending a rough shiver all the way through him. He never knew kissing anybody could feel like it did to kiss Yuuri, and he could live in this moment forever if given the chance.

But eventually they pull back, fighting to catch the breath that’s been lost more completely in those couple minutes than in the whole evening of their dance.

Yuuri’s eyes are wide and sparkling as he stares up at Victor.

Victor leans down to speak directly into Yuuri’s ear, “Let’s find a quieter spot, shall we?”

Yuuri just nods and follows Victor back out of the crowd, letting their fingers weave together again as they slowly make their way out of the throng of people still moving around them.

Yuuri is a bit dazed, heart still pounding, as they move back the way they’d originally come. He stays close to Victor, who looks back every now and then, as if to check to see if he’s still there, despite their tightly clinging hands, but Yuuri is grateful because he’s starting to wonder if he’s in some kind of dream.

It’s a relief when they are finally free of the worst of the crowd, and by some miracle Victor spots an empty corner booth a short distance away and makes straight for it.

To his surprise, once Victor reaches the booth and sits down, he immediately pulls Yuuri down with him until he’s sitting sideways in the taller man’s lap, one arm wrapped tightly around him, pulling him close so that they are face to face once again.

Yuuri feels his stomach flip and flutter with every mingled breath as he looks into Victor’s blue eyes, clear and beautiful even as the still flashing lights shine in them like fireworks. He feels giddy, as if he’s drunk, but he’s pretty sure most of the effects of the alcohol he’d consumed earlier are wearing off now, and this is so much better anyway.

“Yuuri,” Victor says, and it looks like he wants to say more, but the words seem to have gotten lost on the way to his mouth, a mouth Yuuri finds himself staring at now, remembering those heady, heart pounding moments just a minute ago. He wonders if it was all just a dream, or if what he experienced was real.

Without another thought he’s leaning in, pressing his lips back against Victor’s, heart stuttering as Victor immediately kisses back, and oh yes, real or not, he hopes he never has to wake up from this moment, pressed close against Victor, tongues engaged in a new dance equally as exciting as any of their previous ones.

He isn’t sure how long they are there, making out like teenagers, but somehow he ends up straddling Victor’s lap, his fingers tangled in soft silver, the feel of warm fingers slipping up against his back, under the shirt he’s wearing. He’s lost in sensation and he lets himself just float in it, not thinking, not wanting to think, his brain is the enemy but in this moment he is free.

A while later Victor pulls back slightly, flushed and breathing hard, and oh so beautiful.

“Yuuri,” Victor says again as he tries to catch his breath.

Yuuri is tempted to start kissing him again, but something holds him back this time. Perhaps its the last vestiges of the alcohol wearing off because he can feel the return of his nerves in his hesitation.

“Yuuri,” Victor says again, as he raises a hand to stroke at Yuuri’s face, sending another flutter through his stomach. “I was wondering if I could take you out sometime.”

Yuuri stares back, stunned, “What?”

“I want to get coffee with you, or dinner. I want to get to know this amazing person in front of me, off the dance floor too,” Victor says smiling up at him.

Yuuri feels his gut clench at the words. It was one thing for Victor to want to dance with him and enjoy a fun night out, but he never expected it would ever go beyond that. It couldn’t. Here in the club, with the music and lights and just the right amount of alcohol, Yuuri could be just exciting enough to apparently hold someone like Victor’s attention for a couple thrilling nights, but everyday Yuuri would never be able to come close to that. Wouldn’t it be better if they just stopped here, on a high note. It would be easier to just have his memory of having Victor’s attention and letting go, rather than waiting for the inevitable disappointment that would follow them trying to take any of what they had on that dance floor or in this booth beyond the club doors.

Yuuri is suddenly tense and awkward where he is, still straddling Victor’s lap, and he begins to pull away, a part of him sorry it has to end here. He would have liked to have held onto the moment just a little longer, but in the end it’s what has to be done.

“Yuuri?” Victor asks, confusion in his eyes as Yuuri pulls himself free of Victor’s hold, but makes no effort to restrict the Younger man.

“Um, I think it’s probably better if we end this,” Yuuri says, eyes turned away, seemingly unable to look at Victor.

“What? Why!?” Victor can feel his heart rate pick up again, but in a much less pleasant way this time. What had he done wrong? Had he pushed too fast? “I mean, we don’t have to if you’re uncomfortable. Could I get your number instead? Maybe we could text and get to know each other that way.”

Victor is doing his best to stay calm all the while feeling a chasm opening up between him and Yuuri and if feels as if the whole earth is just crumbling under his feet.

“I’m going to be busy and I’m sure you’re busy and...” Yuuri falters, not sure what he can really say, he doesn’t exactly have a good reason he can _tell_ Victor. “I guess I should get going,” he pulls the rest of the way out of the booth, standing up, but still not looking directly at Victor, he tries, but he just can’t do it. “Thanks Victor, I had fun dancing with you.”

With that, he simply turns away, leaving Victor to stare after him, still in shock.

Victor wants to get up, to give chase, to grab that man by the hand and beg him to stay. He wants to pull him back in and never let him go. He wants to do something, anything, to get Yuuri back, but he’s still frozen in his seat, eyes locked on to where Yuuri finally disappeared into the crowd, leaving him alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I'd love to hear what you think, comments and kudos feed my soul!
> 
> I wish you all the best and hope to see you with another update before too long!!


	5. The empty space between songs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Phichit is a good friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not sure I'm totally happy with this chapter but staring at it more isn't going to help, so here it is.

Victor is still staring into the crowd, confused, trying to think what he did wrong and yet trying not to think at all because watching Yuuri go hurt so much more than he ever could have thought it would. He’d been rejected and dumped plenty of times before, but this feels completely different somehow.

“Hey, what happened? Where did Yuuri go?” A voice asks from beside him, startling him out of his pained trance.

Victor looks over and sees Yuuri’s friend from before standing by the table, he’s smiling but there’s also a slightly concerned look on his face.

Victor slumps back in the booth staring at the table in front of him as if he’d find an answer to those questions somewhere on its surface.

Apparently this is a cue for Yuuri’s friend to sit down across from him, “What happened?” He asks again, tone much more serious now and perhaps even slightly worried. When Victor still doesn’t say anything and Phichit starts speaking again. “I saw you guys dancing and I could tell he was having a great time, and I saw you guys come over here afterwards and you both seemed to, um, really be enjoying yourselves,” Phichit says wryly, “I thought it best to leave you on your own for a while but when I came back he was gone, and as his friend, I need you to tell me what happened and where he went.” There’s another slight pause before he adds, with an air of significance, “And remember, this is going to be your only chance to tell your side of the story so it better be good.”

Victor can hear the threat behind the words easily enough, but it doesn’t really bother him, in fact he’s happy Yuuri has such a good friend to look out for him. But not only that, the words strike the tiniest spark of hope as he now sees in Phichit what is likely to be his only chance of ever seeing Yuuri again. He doesn’t have Yuuri’s phone number and he has a feeling Yuuri doesn’t intend to return to the club anytime soon. Phichit is his last possibility of any further contact with a man who has completely swept him off his feet at this point, and he knows he can’t mess this up too.

“I’m not sure what happened,” he says quickly, looking up to meet Phichit’s eyes, not caring if he looks or sounds pathetically desperate at this point, “but I hope you can help me fix it, I don’t know what I did, everything seemed fine – better than fine – and then he just… left, said it was over and walked away, and I wanted to go after him but I couldn’t move and –“

“Hey, hey, hey, slow down,” Phichit interjects quickly, “your not making any sense – actually you kind of are, but I still need you tell me _exactly_ what happened or there’s no way I’m going to be able to help you. And even then I’m Yuuri’s friend not yours, so no promises, but I’m willing to at least hear you out if you slow down.”

Victor takes a deep breath, trying to collect his thoughts and calm his heart back down again, reining in the hope that wants to overtake him, before starting again. “Everything was fine, we were kissing and he seemed to be really into it. Then I asked him if I could take him out sometime, coffee or dinner or something and suddenly he was pulling away. I tried to apologize, I didn’t want him to feel pressured or anything, but he just said we should end it. I asked why and he said something about being busy, but wasn’t really clear, and finally he just said thank you for the dance and left. I wanted to stop him, to ask him to come back, to explain, I wanted to apologize again if I needed to, but I was so shocked, I wasn’t sure if it wouldn’t just make things worse. Help me Phichit! If I did something wrong I want to make it right.”

Phichit can see the pleading look in Victor’s big blue eyes and he would have laughed if it weren’t for how truly miserable the poor man looks. And sadly, the story isn’t actually that surprising, he should have known something like this might happen.

He takes pity on the other man and finally gives a sigh, “Unfortunately that sounds like something Yuuri would do,” he says, rubbing at his forehead. “If you really want to pursue this, you should know that Yuuri has some issues with anxiety, has problems with confidence and doesn’t see himself as desirable.” He can tell Victor immediately wants to argue just how desirable he thinks Yuuri is, but he just puts up a hand to ask him to be quiet. “When he’s calm he knows his insecurities are all in his head, but when he’s stressed he tends to panic. He’s probably afraid of you finding out he’s a normal person and getting bored after you’d become interested in the seductive and confident version of him he only seems able to bring out with a certain level of alcohol in his system. That’s the only version of himself he seems to think anybody would be interested in.”

Phichit takes another breath before he continues, “And the truth is, unfortunately, his anxieties aren’t completely unfounded anymore. There have been a couple of…idiots who pretty much did treat him that way. It’s made him a lot more cautious.”

Phichit isn’t sure if it was a good idea to add that last part, but if Victor isn’t the type to truly accept Yuuri and who he is off the dance floor, then it’s better for everyone if it does end here.

Victor is silent as he takes all this information in, listening to every word, clinging to them like a lifeline, hoping any of them might get him another chance with Yuuri. He doesn’t want to believe that Yuuri could have ever been treated in such a way but he’s too aware of how awful people can be sometimes and it only makes his heart hurt even more to know that that is something Yuuri has had to face.

He looks Phichit in the eye, “I _want_ to know the normal Yuuri,” Victor says seriously, though he still isn’t able to keep the edge of longing out of his voice, “He’s amazing on the dance floor but I’m sure there’s so much more to him and I want to know it all. I’m not bothered by the anxiety, I know several people who deal with it and they are still amazing people. I just want a chance to see all the ways Yuuri is amazing too! If others couldn’t appreciate having such a chance, they are the ones who lost out.”

Phichit sighs again, he’s pretty sure Victor is being genuine and is in fact innocent of any wrongdoing against his friend, but that doesn’t mean Yuuri is going to make it easy for Victor to ever have the chance he’s asking for.

“Listen,” Phichit says, seriously, “I can try to help, try to convince Yuuri to give you a chance, but I can’t promise anything, I won’t force him or lie to him, but I can try to get him to change his mind. Let me have your number so if he does, I at least have a way to get in touch with you. That’s the best I can offer, take it or leave it.”

Without another word, Victor takes the offered phone and puts in his contact info. “Thank you so much!” He says as he hands the phone back.

“I’m not making any guarantees and it might take a while, if I succeed at all, so don’t hold your breath,” Phichit replies. He’s hopeful he can get Yuuri to come around, but he’d hate to get Victor’s hopes up and then fail.

“I understand, but you’re probably my only chance and you’re not exactly obligated to help me, so if you can do anything, I’m grateful.”

Phichit thinks to himself. “Well, I’m really doing it for him, he seemed happy dancing with you, happier than I’ve seen him in a long time, and he deserves some happiness, I’m worried he’ll really regret not taking this chance so –“

He cuts himself off as his phone lights up and he looks at what comes up, “Sorry, I have to go, looks like Yuuri is waiting for me outside.”

Victor makes a move as if he wants to head straight for wherever Yuuri is but Phichit stops him, “It’s probably better if you just let me go, I’m not sure if you showing up wouldn’t make it worse for now. I promise, I’ll talk to him and let you know in a few days if he might come around.” He stands and reaches out to shake Victor’s hand, who takes it in a firm grip before letting go, thanking him one more time.

Victor watches the other man go, thinking back on everything that had happened that night. It had all been going so perfectly, he’d been so happy, and now he doesn’t know if he will ever get to see Yuuri again. He hardly knows the other man, it’s only been a couple nights of dancing after all, not enough to really become attached, right? Yet, for some reason, all he wants is to know he’ll get to see him again, to get to know him outside of this noisy club with too many people. He just wants a chance, for both of them.

He needs to get out of there, but he stays at that table for a few minutes, giving Yuuri and his friend some time to leave, before he finally heads back out of the club and into the dark night.

He knows Yuuri is likely long gone by then, but he looks for him anyway as he walks back to his car. As expected, Yuuri is nowhere in sight.

 

* * *

 

Phichit emerges into the relative dark and quiet of the parking lot and it doesn’t take long before he spots Yuuri, arms wrapped around himself, waiting for Phichit.

“Our ride should be here in just a minute,” he says once he reaches Yuuri, who has clearly withdrawn into himself.

He doesn’t say anything about Victor or the night, not yet. Better to get Yuuri home where he’ll be more comfortable, and hopefully more open to talking.

He’s actually not sure if what he told Victor about possibly making things worse was true, maybe Victor could actually help. But he didn’t want to take any chances, not until he at least hears what Yuuri has to say. It isn’t that he doesn’t believe Victor, but he needs to be sure.

The car arrives a short time later and they get in, Phichit giving the address to the driver before turning back to see how Yuuri is doing. Yuuri himself remains silent and simply stares out the window for the whole ride.

When they get back out of the car, Phichit follows Yuuri back up to his apartment. “Want some tea?” He asks once they’re inside, already heading to Yuuri’s small kitchen to turn on the kettle and grab Yuuri’s favorite tea. It’s not nearly as late as he’d expected they’d be out and he can tell whatever alcohol Yuuri had consumed earlier in the evening has worn off, which in part explains what happened.

Yuuri doesn’t really answer but Phichit isn’t concerned, knowing the tea will do his friend good. A few minutes later he brings two steaming mugs out to the living room where Yuuri is curled up on the sofa, clearly having gone to change into sweats at some point, and now aimlessly flipping through the tv channels but not seeming to be really looking at what is on the screen.

Phichit trades him the mug for the remote which Yuuri takes with a muttered thanks before leaning over the cup to breathe in the steam.

Phichit watches as his friend takes a few careful sips to test the heat, and finally seems to relax a bit.

“So, what happened then?”

Yuuri flinches slightly at the question, still staring into the mug before him, but finally just shrugs.

Phichit decides to just push forward, knowing that neither of them wants to drag this out. “So, what I know is, once you ran off and left me hanging at the bar, you guys went straight to the dance floor and started dancing. You then kept dancing for a very long time, and you were both amazing, by the way.” He ignores the look Yuuri gives him at that last comment and keeps going, “Then you get quite… _close_ , before you eventually leave the dance floor, hand in hand, and find a nice little booth to, shall we say, ‘get to know each other a little better’.”

“Were you watching me the _whole_ time?” Yuuri asks, voice raised in incredulous shock.

“Well, I gave you a few minutes privacy when I saw the direction things were moving,” he offered with a shrug, “but now I think that was probably a mistake because the moment I came back you were gone and Victor was sitting there looking miserable and lost.”

He watches as Yuuri curls into himself even more and lifts his mug again, probably wanting to hide behind it more than to actually drink the tea.

“So, of course, I’m confused, and have know idea where my friend has gone or what happened in those minutes I left him alone when I though he was having a great time. Then I find you out in the parking lot, looking just as miserable as your dance partner. I’ve known you a long time Yuuri, I can tell something happened and you’re upset. I really hope you can tell me what happened so I can help you deal with it, or move on or whatever.”

Phichit continues to watch his friend, who sits unmoving, almost seeming to not even have heard what he’d just said. He knows he can’t force Yuuri to talk if he really doesn’t want to, but he hopes that won’t be the case this time.

Still, Yuuri sits in silence and Phichit had no way to know what his friend could be thinking just then. He can guess, if Victor is to be trusted, but in the end, Yuuri has always been, and probably will always be a frustrating enigma in these situations.

“He didn’t hurt me,” Yuuri finally says, voice quiet, “It wasn’t his fault.”

Phichit waits a few more seconds then says, “So what did happen?”

He sees Yuuri shiver a bit and close his eyes, then take a deep breath before opening them again. “We had an amazing night, it felt like flying more than dancing. We kissed on the dance floor first and then moved to the table. I felt like I could drown in him, it was perfect.”

Yuuri speaks as if he is remembering some sort of dream, but then a pained look crosses his face as he continues, “He asked me out, said he wanted to get dinner or coffee. I wanted to say yes, but he was there for Yuuri the confident dancer, if he saw me away from the lights and music he’d be disappointed, and then I’d be disappointed to watch him leave. If I let myself hope and had to watch him go like the others in the end, I just knew it would hurt and I was so afraid. It seemed better to just leave this as a fun memory and move on, I’m sure he can find plenty of other people to dance with or take to dinner that are more interesting than me.”

Phichit can’t help but sigh at hearing Yuuri say these things. This is exactly what he was afraid of.

“Yuuri, I know you think you aren’t that interesting or special, and you’ve had some bad luck in the past, but anyone who really knows you knows you _are_ special in so many ways. I think you are an amazing person and I know other people out there will think so too if you give them the chance.” He can see his words aren’t getting through so he takes a deep breath and continues, “I actually talked to Victor when I came back and saw you weren’t there.”

“What?” Yuuri asks, shocked, finally turning his eyes to Phichit.

“I didn’t know where you went, and I wanted to make sure you were okay. He then told me the same story you just did, but I thought I should hear from you before I made any judgements. Now that I have, I have to say that I think Victor really does want to know the real Yuuri, the Yuuri who is so much more than the alluring fiend of the dance floor.” Phichit pauses, then gives a mischievous smile, “I mean, he hasn’t even seen you on a pole yet,” he teases.

“Phichit!” Yuuri cries, before hiding his face behind his knees in embarrassment, his hands still being occupied with holding onto his tea.

Phichit skooches closer to his friend so that he can wrap his arms around the hunched over form, “In all seriousness, I really think you should give the guy a chance. He really does seem to be as nice as you were making him out to be, not to mention how into making out you seemed to be too.” He can’t help laughing at the groan this elicits, but he continues on, “You both really seemed happy on that dance floor, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so into dancing with another person, and you both seem so miserable after you walked away. You were willing to take the risk of just showing up tonight and it turned out better than you expected right? Why not take a chance on a little more, just try, it could turn out just as good.”

Yuuri listens to his friend and he really wants to believe what he’s saying, really wants to reach out for Victor with the hope of more. He doesn’t want to be held back by anxiety and faded memories that have never quite stopped haunting him. But then he remembers how it ended, how he couldn’t even give Victor a decent reason for why he was leaving. He’d just panicked and spat out some random nonsense and walked away. How could he even face Victor after that? Even if he hadn’t reacted so abysmally then, he probably would have done so eventually, so really he probably had just made the best choice anyway. If only he could explain it to Phichit, but his friend is too kind and always seemed to see the best in Yuuri. Yuuri loves him for it, but he knows most people aren’t like that.

“Please, at least think about it,” he hears Phichit say, after several moments of silence, “I think he really might be a good guy for you and you deserve every chance at happiness, so please, just think about it before you make any final decisions, okay?”

His friend really isn’t asking a lot so he goes ahead and nods in response, causing Phichit to reward him with an extra squeeze before finally letting him go.

He’s pretty sure he won’t be changing his mind, however, and he is going to be busy once the week starts anyway, and will need to start focusing on the next big production that’s coming up. He probably won’t have much time to be thinking of much else then anyway. He would have liked to take a chance on Victor, but in the end, it probably is better this way.

 

* * *

 

The rest of the weekend passes uneventfully. Phichit, mercifully, doesn’t bring up Friday night’s events again and Yuuri does his best to forget about them as well.

Unfortunately, he isn’t really as successful with that as he wants to be. Again and again, flashes of that night play through his mind, Victor’s smile, the way Victor moved, the way his hands felt on the different parts of Yuuri’s body, the way Victor’s lips and tongue moved against his own...

But no matter what images and feelings his brain brings back for him, they always end the same way, with the confused and hurt look on Victor’s face as he’d pulled away, and left the other man alone at that table.

That moment torments him, filling him with guilt. He hadn’t even been able to come up with a good excuse or explanation. But he’d panicked, he had been just so afraid in that moment. He’d wanted to stay, to say yes to anything Victor offered him, but how long could it last before Victor just abandoned him for someone more interesting. Yet, perhaps he’d been unfair, in leaving just like that, cruel even. At the very least, he owes Victor an apology, but is equally terrified of ever having to face the man again with the shame of his inexcusable behavior.

Phichit does his best to cheer him up over the weekend, and he tries to enjoy the last few days he’s free before he has to to throw himself into work and putting together the new production the studio is planning, but in the end he’s grateful when Monday finally arrives. Work will be able to take his mind off this whole mess better than anything else.

 

He takes a deep breath as he walks into the familiar space Monday morning still empty and quiet at the early hour before either teachers or students arrive. He was never a morning person, but when he can he enjoys coming in and having the studio to himself to just stretch and warm up, without any distractions.

He hears the door to the practice room open just as he’s finishing his usual warm up and isn’t surprised to see Minako watching him from the doorway.

“Good morning, Minako,” he says in greeting.

“Good morning. You ready to get to work on everything for the new show?” She asks, a sparkle of eagerness in her eye.

“Yeah, I think so. It’s going to be a lot of work but I think it will be good if we can pull everything together,” He answers smiling. The upcoming production is their biggest event of the year and Minako always gets so excited for it. He has to admit that, despite the work, it usually turns out to be worth it, for both dancers and audience. Every year it seems to get bigger, which makes it more challenging, but it also means they always get to try something new.

“Great! I just know this is going to be the best one yet! I even took your advice and brought on someone else to help us get everything perfect.”

Yuuri’s eyes widen, in a mix of surprise and confusion at her statement. He can’t remember off hand ever giving her that kind of advice. “Huh? What do you mean? Who did you get?”

“You remember that conference you decided to attend last year?” she asks.

Realization begins to dawn and his throat goes dry. _No, don’t panic. Maybe it’s not as bad as you think. Just hear her out._

“Um, yeah, I guess. What about it?” He asks, hoping he sounds half as calm as the words suggest.

“You suggested we hire an event producer if we really wanted to take this show to the next level. So I did,” she says, smiling brightly. “I even got that guy you were raving about after hearing him talk at the conference, um, what was his name… Ugh, I can’t believe I forgot... I think I have it written down in my office.”

“Victor Nikiforov,” Yuuri says, feeling like the ground is about to disappear under his feet and send him reeling into space.

“Yes, that’s him! He’s coming this afternoon to get started helping us make this the best event we’ve ever had!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So maybe Phichit won't actually need to do much after all.
> 
> Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed this chapter!! Thank you all so much for all your support on the last one! I love hearing from you and your reactions to this story! Your comments give me life!
> 
> Hope you all have a great day! Thank you so much for reading!


	6. Humming in the Silence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chris is a good friend.

Victor makes his way home that night in a kind of daze, flashes of memory popping up behind his eyes that he quickly pushes away again because it hurts so much.

He finally gets to his empty apartment, and looks around the space taking it in as if it were an alien landscape. He sighs as he hangs up his keys on the little hook by the door and sets his wallet on the table nearby.

He wishes he had a dog for about the millionth time, he’s always wanted a dog, always wanted something alive to come home to, to greet him and show him that there was someone in this world that loved him and would always be there waiting for him. Tonight, that would have been especially appreciated.

Instead, there is only empty silence in the space around him.

He goes about his nightly routine, taking a shower, brushing his teeth, getting ready for bed, feeling strangely blank and empty through it all, each step carried out through habit and without thought.

He finally settles into bed, deciding not to even bother looking at his phone the way he usually would. He turns out the light and lets the sudden darkness envelop him.

For a moment, he relishes the emptiness of it all, but as if it was waiting for just this, his mind begins to play through the full reel of the nights events in bright technicolor against the surrounding black. He can almost feel the heat and noise of the club, can almost smell Yuuri’s cologne. He remembers every brush of fingers as they’d danced, every push, every pull, every turn. He remembers the heat of the other man’s body as it pressed itself against him, that warm mouth as it moved against his own, the taste of perfection as they breathed each other like pure oxygen, each breath more dizzyingly heady than the last.

As he sobs into his pillow, the visions still refuse to stop, forcing him to relive how Yuuri had pulled away, had said they should end this, even before it really began. He watched again as Yuuri walked away lost in the crowd and noise of the club almost as if he had never existed. And yet, he would always exist for Victor now. There is no way he’ll ever be able to forget Yuuri, to forget those fleeting moments, those perfect dances they shared. He’ll always remember the way Yuuri never seemed to ask anything of him, instead sharing himself through the music and their dance.

He will always remember how he walked away when Victor wanted nothing more but for this man to simply stay in his life, in whatever way he was willing to.

And now, as he cries into his pillow, he tries to hold onto hope, that somehow Phichit can convince Yuuri to give him another chance, just one chance to let him prove to Yuuri that he really is worth it, and that whatever his anxiety might say Victor truly wants to know everything he can about Yuuri.

The tears eventually slow, his emotions settling into exhaustion, and finally he drops into sleep.

 

Victor awakes the next morning still feeling rather drained but a lot calmer.

As he goes about his morning routine he carefully thinks over everything Phichit had told him, and however much seeing Yuuri walk away last night hurt, he has seen enough of anxiety and it’s effects that he can’t truly be angry with the other man, especially if he’d actually had some bad experiences in the past as well. In fact it just makes him sad. He will never be able to understand the heartlessness of some people, how selfish they can be, to treat people who clearly didn’t deserve it, like they didn’t matter.

If he is angry at anyone it is those people that hurt Yuuri, those that gave him a more concrete reason to believe the lies his mind told him so that he was too afraid to truly give Victor a chance. But he knows such anger is a waste of time and energy that would be better spent in trying to repair that damage, if he’s ever given the chance.

He sit’s at his counter with a cup of coffee as he continues to think over the whole thing.

One thing he’s sure of, is that he’s grateful for Phichit. Grateful he was there and that he was willing to listen to Victor and offer a glimmer of hope. He’s fairly sure if Yuuri had been there alone like he usually was, he would simply have to live with never having another chance with the only person that managed to light up the dark places inside him in such a way. Still, even with Phichit, there was no way to know when or if he’d actually get to see Yuuri again and the thought that it might never happen makes his heart ache more painfully than he wants to admit. Perhaps he shouldn’t have gotten his hopes up so far. Perhaps he should have learned from all his own disappointments in life how easy it is for things not to work out the way you want them.

He can feel himself start to fall down his own dark and slippery slope again and grabs his phone.

**_From Victor:_ **

_Hey, are you free to get brunch?_

He puts the phone down, hoping his friend can meet him. He needs someone to talk this out with and it probably isn’t the best for him to be alone just now.

**_From Chris:_ **

_What’s wrong?_

The message comes back a couple minutes later and he looks at it in confusion.

**_From Victor:_ **

_Why do you think something’s wrong? I just asked you to brunch._

**_From Chris:_ **

_Exactly. I’m always the one trying to drag you out somewhere and now you’re asking me. I don’t remember the last time you invited me anywhere._

**_From Victor:_ **

_Sorry. You’re right. I guess I really haven’t been a good friend lately._

**_From Victor:_ **

_Last night didn’t go quite as expected and it has me feeling low. I just need someone to talk to_

**_From Chris:_ **

_Ok, let’s meet at the place we used to go at 11_

**_From Victor:_ **

_Got it_

**_From Victor:_ **

_Thanks_

**_From Chris:_ **

_No problem. see you soon_

 

Victor lets out a sigh. He’s relieved Chris is able to meet with him, but he also feels a bit guilty that this is what it took for him to actually make the effort to see his friend.

He finishes his coffee and gets ready, pushing himself to go through all the usual steps of his routine despite feeling like he’d rather just skip it. It does help, in the end, to make him feel a little more like himself and bring some sense of normality back.

 

He meets Chris outside the diner at the appointed time. It’s busy as usual, for a Saturday, but it doesn’t take too long before they are able to get a table. They go through the motions of small talk as they look over the menu and make their choices.

“So, what happened?” Chris asks once the server has left with their order, eyes now locked onto Victor’s face. “It must have gone pretty badly for you to ask me to brunch first thing the very next morning.”

Victor can’t really bring himself to look directly at his friend just yet, choosing to look out the window beside them instead.

“It wasn’t all bad,” he starts, still trying to sort out how he wants to explain things, “it started really well. He was actually there with a friend this time but I didn’t even have time to get a drink before Yuuri was pulling me off towards the dance floor.”

He’s quiet as the server places their drinks down, reliving the night in his mind yet again, how excited he’d been to be close to Yuuri again, how they stood so close and spoke directly into each other’s ear. The almost hungry look in Yuuri’s eyes…

“He even said there were no rules about how many dances I got because he was there to dance with me that night, but he told me not to take my eyes off him, as if that were even a possibility.” He pauses again, unable to stop the memories from flooding his mind, the small smile at that one in particular, but at the same time he can feel the prickle in his eyes of tears trying to form. “The dancing was even better than before, if that’s even possible, and as we got tired we just kept pulling closer and closer till we were hardly dancing at all.”

Chris can see and hear the wistfulness in Victor, the way he seems to be pulling these memories out almost as though they are a collection of delicate treasures. It seems strange that his friend should put such value of memories less than a day old and about someone he barely knew. Chris had been happy for his friend, finally having a good time and recapturing some joy in life again, but he never would have guessed a few dances with Yuuri, however talented the other man was, would have such a profound effect on his friend.

Victor remains unaware of his friends thoughts as he hesitates to tell the next part. Even though the events had happened in a club full of people, something about the moment still feels utterly private.

“We kissed there,” he finally continues, “And if I thought dancing with Yuuri was amazing, kissing him was so much more. We ended up leaving the dance floor and found a table. He was so beautiful and I could hardly believe I had him there with me and then we were kissing again and it was like nothing I’d ever felt before. I couldn’t stop and it didn’t seem like he could either, but eventually I guess we had to breathe again and if there were any doubts before that, in that moment I knew I needed more, I needed to know hm outside the club and in the real world, I wanted to know everything about Yuuri.”

Finally he meets his friend’s eyes, “So I asked him if he would have coffee with me, or dinner, or whatever he felt comfortable with. …But…but the moment I’d said it something changed. He pulled away. I tried to apologize, suggested just texting, but he just kept pulling further and further away, it took everything I had to stop myself from physically reaching out and pulling him back.” Every word feels like a struggle to get it past his throat now, but he somehow presses on. “And then he said we had to end it end it, said something about being busy and then he was just... gone.”

Chris can see how hard this is for his friend and it hurts him to see his friends obvious suffering. He wants to offer some kind of comfort, but he can also tell the story isn’t over yet so he just stays quiet, waiting for Victor to be ready to continue.

It takes a few seconds but he finally does, “I know I barely know him. A few dances is hardly even an acquaintance, but watching him leave, it felt like my heart was breaking, it hurt so much more than I thought it could, it still hurts.”

Chris had known his friend was really into Yuuri, but this is something else. Even when Victor used to fall for a new dance partner every other week, it hardly seemed to phase him each time they parted ways. Victor had always fallen fast, but never anywhere near this hard.

He’s shaken out of his musings as Victor starts speaking again, “I wanted to go after him, but if something I said scared him off, I worried that following him would only make things worse, but I wasn’t even able to get his number and if it weren’t for his friend I’d probably have to give up all hope.”

“His friend?” Chris asks, curious at this sudden turn.

However, that is when the server returns with their food, forcing Chris to wait for any further explanation.

Chris does his best to be patient as their order is placed before them but as soon as the server has stepped away he prompts Victor, “What about his friend?”

Victor picks up a fork and begins poking at his food like it’s just something for his hands to do and doesn’t show any intention of possibly eating anything in front of him.

“I don’t know why he brought his friend, I did get the impression Yuuri had been nervous too, and maybe almost didn’t come, so maybe moral support? Encouragement?” He shrugged, still staring at his plate, “He was apparently keeping an eye on us but missed seeing Yuuri leave and came up to ask me where he went. When I explained what happened, he wasn’t all that surprised, even said he should have expected it.” Victor gives a a deep sigh before placing his fork back down on the plate and lifting his hands to his face, heels of his palms pressed into his eyes.

Chris wonders if Victor is going to cry. He hopes not, he’s never been that good around crying people, but when Victor lowers his hands again, followed by another deep sighing breath, his eyes are dry and there just seems to be a tired and resigned look in them.

“Apparently Yuuri deals with anxiety and my expressing interest in him outside the club made him panic,” He explains with an air of finality.

Chris waits a few seconds more, before prompting one more time, “Did his friend say anything else? You said there was some hope, is this friend going to help you?”

Victor gives a slight shrug again, “He said he would try and I gave him my number, but I’m not sure it’s worth expecting much. He was going to talk to Yuuri first to confirm my story and of course what Yuuri wants is going to come first, so if Yuuri insists that he doesn’t want anything to do with me his friend isn’t going to do anything and I don’t have his number so I can’t ask for an update or anything, so I might never hear anything anyway. Maybe it would have been better to just let go instead of stringing myself along with this empty thread of hope, I just didn’t want it to be over already.” Victor finally looks up to meet his friend’s eyes, “Was this whole thing a mistake? Was I expecting too much?”

Chris hates seeing his friend like this, his friend who so often is confident and cheerful, even when the going gets tough. He’s only ever seen Victor this down once, and it was something he hoped never to have to see again. In fact, half the reason he took Victor out to that club in the first place was because he’d started to see that terrible dullness returning to his friends eyes and knew he needed to get Victor out of himself to find some joy in life again. It had all seemed to be going so well too, as annoying as Victor had been, messaging him about Yuuri almost every day, it was good to see that spark return that made him excited for each day. That it had to take a turn like this just seemed like terrible luck. He hoped Yuuri’s friend could help, but it seemed uncertain at best, so he would have to take care of Victor without raising his hopes too much, but without dashing them entirely. Chris is one of the few people who knows how fragile Victor truly is, so he knows he’ll have to tread carefully.

“It wasn’t a mistake, it’s just an unfortunate situation. If he really left because of anxiety, then he’s probably hurting too, who knows what terrible things his mind is telling him. Maybe he can overcome it and his friend can help you get back together, and maybe he can’t.” He can see the pain in Victor’s eyes at that last statement but he knows false hope isn’t going to help right now. “If you think his friend was genuine in his offer of help, then I’d say give it a couple of weeks to see if you hear back, and if you don’t then let it go and do your best to move on.”

Victor looks at his friend thoughtfully before turning his eyes back to the plate before him with a sad looking nod, “I guess you’re right,” he says with a halfhearted smile before picking up a bite and putting it in his mouth.

Chris takes a bite of his food as well, giving himself time to think, knowing he has to do something to at least distract Victor from everything Yuuri for a little while.

“Hey, weren’t you saying something about a big new project at work you were about to start that you were really excited about?”

The look that crosses Victor’s face, is not at all what he’d been hoping for as it seems even more pained rather than less.

“I _was_ looking forward to it, but now I wish I hadn’t accepted it. A dance school is putting on an annual exhibition for its teachers and students. It sounds like it’s been increasingly successful and some of the school’s students have gone on to win awards and join famous companies. It was something I really wanted to talk to Yuuri about, find out if he knew about it, ask him for advice, just something to really get conversation moving since he’s clearly experienced in the dance world. Now, I’m afraid its just going to be a painful reminder of how I won’t get to see him or talk to him about it.”

Chris’s smile falters at this, not sure how to respond.

Victor can see Chris is really trying to help him out, and knows he’s not making it easy. Chris has always tried to be there for him, and he does honestly appreciate it, he appreciates that his friend was willing to come out and meet him like this, and listen to his problems and to be honest, even just being able to talk about it to someone, really does help. It would have been much worse if he’d just stayed home by himself. So he makes a decision, he’s going to stay away from home and as much out of his own head as he can. Whether he wants to deal with the dance production or not doesn’t matter now because he’s already committed to it and he isn’t going to go against his reputation and back out now. So, he needs to do whatever it’s going to take to start that project on the best foot he can. If nothing else, he is a professional.

He looks down at his plate again, staring at the food there for a couple of seconds before picking up a large bite and putting it back in his mouth. He chews and swallows, before looking back over to his friend, “Do you have anything planned after this?”

Chris raises a quizzical eyebrow at the apparently sudden change in his friend’s attitude. “Not really, why?”

“I was thinking about going to check out that new action movie that came out a couple weeks ago, want to join me?” Victor asks with a smile. It doesn’t quite reach his eyes but it’s a start.

Chris smiles in return, quickly picking up on what Victor is trying to do. If keeping him distracted and occupied will help him deal with this mess and get through the next couple days then Chris is going to do his best to make the effort worth it.

“Oh, yeah, I’ve been wanting to see that one,” he answers enthusiastically.

 

* * *

 

The weekend passes more quickly than Victor could have hoped. He can’t thank Chris enough for just spending the weekend with him as they make their way around the city hitting up places they haven’t been to in ages. They get in a significant amount of retail therapy in as well, a favorite pastime of both of theirs.

Victor knows he is really going to owe his friend for giving up his own time and putting up with him as he just tries to get through the weekend without dwelling too much on Yuuri and the events of Friday night. Chris had even let Victor crash at his place on Saturday night after they stayed up late watching old French movies and drinking wine.

Returning home on Sunday brings the reality of his life crashing back in on him though as he faces the empty apartment that just seems to want to remind him more and more just how empty the rest of his life is too. Maybe he really should think about getting a dog.

To push back the emptiness he puts on some music before pulling out his laptop and looking over his preliminary notes for the project he’ll start working on tomorrow. He really was excited about this one, he hasn’t had the opportunity to work on anything related to dance in a long time and Yuuri had really sparked his inspiration too. Now it seems rather bittersweet. He still has a lot of ideas he thinks will make this event a great success, but it will surely be a painful reminder of everything he’d shared with Yuuri. Even so, he’s determined to do it justice, if nothing else, if he can do his best to recreate even just a fraction of how amazing his experience had been dancing with Yuuri for the participants and audience of this production, then perhaps it will be worth it.

With a sigh he finally closes the computer and heads to bed, hoping he’ll be able to find new purpose and motivation in the project ahead of him.

 

He doesn’t sleep particularly well, but better than he’d feared.

The day starts as normal as any other Monday and he can almost believe Friday and the weekend that followed were nothing more than dreams and here he is returning to the mundane pattern of his daily life.

He heads to the office to take care of some logistical matters, dealing with emails, and other rather boring routine tasks. He gets lunch at his usual place down the street and after returning to the office to pick up what he’ll need for this first meeting with his new client.

He leaves a little earlier than he originally planned but figures it will be good since he isn’t too familiar with the part of the city the dance studio is in.

He walks into the dance school marveling how bright and inviting the lobby is, and he can tell the light and airy design extends further into the studio as well. He can hear the soft sounds of music drifting up from what is likely one of the classrooms the facility has. It’s quite a bit bigger than he’d thought at first. It seems rather quiet but as it is early afternoon on a Monday he supposes it isn’t their busiest time.

He goes up to the reception desk and greets the young lady stationed there when she looks up to meet his eyes with a smile, “Good afternoon. Can I help you?” She asks.

“Yes, I’m a little early but I have an appointment to meet with Ms. Okukawa this afternoon.”

“Oh, yes. You must be Mr....” She looks down to check a piece of paper on the desk “...Nikiforov?”

He nods.

“Just a moment, I’ll get her for you.”

She gets up from her post and leaves Victor to gaze around the spacious lobby as he waits. He notices a wall lined with photographs, some that seem to be individuals, others, groups of people. He guesses they must be some of the students and teachers at the school.

He’s just about to go take a closer look when he hears a voice behind him.

“Mr. Nikiforov, it’s so good to finally meet you.”

He turns to see a lovely woman who looks like she could be both young and middle aged at the same time. She carries the obvious grace of a dancer but has about her an air of extensive experience that belies the youthful appearance of her face and body.

“Please, call me Victor,” He says with a smile reaching out to shake her hand, appreciating the firm grip she offers in return. “You have a wonderful place here, I’m almost inspired to take a class just from entering the lobby.”

“Oh, do you have dance experience?” She asks, stepping back looking him over with the assessing eyes of an expert.

He laughs lightly in response, “I enjoy going out dancing from time to time and took a few classes in college, but I’m afraid I have very little formal training.”

She continues to look him over for a few more seconds and he begins to feel slightly nervous under her obvious scrutiny. He wonders what a trained eye like hers might see in him, wonders how things would have been different if he had been able to go into dance like he wanted so long ago.

She hums thoughtfully as she gives him a final once over, “Well, I’m of the mind that it is never too late to start and dance has many benefits at all ages and levels. Perhaps I should have our head teacher see what he can do with you, he can spot natural talent a mile away and excels at really bringing it out in his students.”

“He sounds like quite an asset for a place like this,” he says in reply. He really isn’t that interested in getting back into dance right now, not after the last weekend, but he will need to know as much as he can about the school and the people in charge, because he will have to work closely with them to make this event the success they all want.

“He definitely is,” Ms. Okukawa continues, “He was my best student, after all, and he has really helped me make this place what it is today. In fact, it was on his suggestion that I decided to hire an event producer, and he recommended you in particular.”

Victor’s eyes widen at that, “Really? I wasn’t aware my reputation was that well known in the dance community, I rarely have the opportunity to work on such projects. Do you know if I’ve met him somewhere?”

She smiles as she answers, “I don’t think so, he went to a conference last year and apparently he heard you speak there and was impressed with what you had to say. I trust his judgement so I thought I’d give it a try. Actually, he was pretty surprised I decided to hire someone, I don’t think he expected me to take him seriously.”

Victor cannot help the spark of curiosity at this new information. He can guess which conference it was she is likely referring to, there was one in the area covering various areas of live performance, including theatre and dance, and he had talked about some of his experience with such events and how well planned and organized production can make even small events significantly more successful. Such talks are generally more aimed at helping others get into producing things themselves and better managing their projects, however, and are not intended as advertisements of his own skills, so hearing that someone here had been impressed enough with _him_ is not a situation he expected. That being said, it is certainly flattering to hear.

He smiles in return, “Well, I look forward to meeting him, it’s not often I get to meet a fan of my work. Is he here today?”

“Oh, yes, absolutely. He’s actually teaching a class just now but it should be finishing up soon, follow me.”

With that, she begins to lead him back towards the classrooms. He can hear the beat of the music get louder as they moved farther into the school, but he notices that most of the rooms they pass are empty.

“It doesn’t seem too busy right now,” he comments.

“No, at the moment it’s pretty slow. Things really pick up later in the afternoon. If you were to come by around 4:00, the lobby would be full of adults and kids waiting for their lessons. Morning and early afternoon we mostly holdhigh-level and specialized classes for professional level dancers. We have a few adult classes as well during the day but Mondays especially aren’t popular, which is why I thought it would be perfect for our first meeting. Here we are,” she tells him as they approach a door that seems to lead to the source of the music. “We have an advanced Jazz class going now but they should be done in a couple minutes, would you like to watch through the window?”

Ms. Okukawa steps back from the closed door to let him get a better look through the long window running along one side of the door.

He steps up and sees a class of about ten students dancing a series of complex moves to the rhythm of the music playing beyond the door. His eyes move across the dancing figures, as if pulled by some magnetic force, to land quickly on the figure near the center, clearly leading them.

Even without that familiar head of black hair, Victor would have recognized him, just by the way he moves as if the music were coming out of him instead of the speakers.

It’s Yuuri.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello my lovely readers!! I hope you are enjoying this story.
> 
> So, what do you think is going to happen when they meet again?
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! Comments and kudos are always much appreciated!  
> I hope you all have a wonderful day!!


	7. As a new song starts to play

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuuri and Victor come face to face again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, did you like the cliffhanger last time? The last two times really.   
> Well, finally our two dancing fools are coming back together. What will happen?
> 
> Thank you all for reading!! I hope you like this chapter!

Yuuri dismisses his class with a quick smile and wave, proud, as always, of his students’ performance. But as they turn their backs to him the smile drops from his face and he focuses on gathering his things as quickly as possible.

According to Minako, Victor is scheduled to be here soon but he should still have a few minutes to make an escape, it was cutting things close, but he didn’t really have a choice. He’d have cancelled the class if he could, but in the end, he’d determined his best bet was to sneak out and avoid the meeting. He can figure out some excuse to tell Minako later and he knows it’s just putting off the inevitable, but he needs time, time to think about what he should say to Victor, or better yet, contrive some way to avoid ever actually meeting the man at all. How can he face him, after what had happened on Friday, how can he ever look Victor in the eye again? Victor must hate him now.

In any case, he just knows he needs to get out before Victor arrives, which means he needs to get out of here just behind his students.

He hears the door behind him open and close to let out the last of his students and he rushes to grab the last of his stuff and throw it in his bag before turning to head out the door, only to come face to face with the bluest eyes he’s ever seen. They are still just as brilliant as they were under the lights of the club. Just as blue as they were on the stage where he gave that fateful talk so long ago.

 

* * *

 

 

Yuuri remembers that day all too well.

He’d gone to the conference hoping for new ideas to promote the school and their various recitals and, of course, the big annual exhibition. The talk Victor had given on the benefits of good event production for live performances was among those he was most interested in.

He’d heard the name Victor Nikiforov here and there on a few forums and it was definitely mentioned a lot among the other attendees at the convention so Yuuri picked up pretty quickly that he was someone well known in the business, but little more than that. He had this image in his head of a middle aged, slightly balding, yet cheerful person, for some reason.

The talk itself was held in one of the larger rooms and even though he’d arrived about half an hour early the hall was already filling up fast.

He managed to get a seat with a good view along the aisle about halfway back. He pulled out his notebook and a pen so he could write down anything useful, before putting his bag under the chair.

He pulled out his phone and passed the time while he waited for the talk to start.

When he finally looked up again he saw that the room had been filled to capacity, including a few people standing near the walls and he was grateful he’d planned ahead.

A dark haired man in a suit stepped up to the podium and the crowd filling the room hushed, allowing the man to welcome everyone and thank them for coming before finally introducing the featured speaker: Victor Nikiforov.

Yuuri was confused for about two seconds as he watch a young, pale haired man walk onto and across the stage to shake the other’s hand, thanking him for the introduction before finally turning towards the audience.

Yuuri was close enough to see that this man was certainly not what he had been expecting. He was young and handsome with a bright smile that shone out at the audience as he greeted him. And then hearing him speak in that rich, melodious, slightly accented voice, quickly had Yuuri hypnotized.

His attention remained rapt on the figure speaking on stage as he talked about the various stages of putting on an event and what needed to be done in each and how this could impact the final result, along with examples to demonstrate each point. He couldn’t help being impressed by the array of events this man had clearly pulled off to utter success and in the end, Yuuri completely forgot about the notebook in his hand.

At the end of the hour, the floor was opened up to questions. He hadn’t even really realized his hand had been raised until he was being gestured up towards the microphone. He was so surprised to actually be selected that he almost panicked before realizing he did indeed have a question to ask. He felt his palms get sweaty as he reached the microphone and managed to ask his question – about how certain steps should be modified for smaller, lower budget productions and still be effective – without stuttering too much.

He’d listened attentively, heart pounding as he did his best to seem calm as the man on stage addressed him with his answer, those piercing blue eyes even making eye-contact with Yuuri’s own a few times as he spoke.

Victor had smiled down at him from the stage as he finished and Yuuri had given a quick thank you into the microphone before returning to his seat in what he hoped appeared to be a calm manner, trying to breath normally and recover from his own daring.

Upon returning to his seat, he kept his eyes off the stage and finally attempted to take a few notes through the remainder of the question session.

He felt a mix of disappointment and relief once the talk was over. That is, until all those who had asked questions were asked to come to the front again.

Yuuri seriously considered just sneaking out at that point but then chided himself, knowing it was just anxiety trying to get the best of him and he should see what this was about, so he went up to the front where the others who’d asked questions were also gathering, about ten it looked like. The man who had introduced Victor was there too and when it seemed everyone had arrived he let them all know that they would like to take a group picture for the website. Once everyone said they were okay with that, the man arranged them on either side of Victor. Yuuri kept to the outside, too nervous to get too close to the man at the center.

Once the photos were finished Victor then went out of his way to shake hands with and thank each person in the group.

Yuuri wiped his hands hastily on his jeans, hoping his hand wouldn’t be too sweaty once Victor got to him. Victor’s hand was warm and firm and when Yuuri looked up from their hands to finally meet Victor’s vivid ocean eyes once more, he couldn’t help but meet the smile he saw there with one of his own.

“Thank you very much for attending, I hope you found it useful,” Victor said, still smiling.

“Um, yes, I did. Thank you,” Yuuri managed to get out, sheepishly.

Then the pressure on his hand was gone and Victor had moved on to the next person in line. The other man also thanked him with a quick handshake and then it was clear everything was over and it was time to leave.

He walked back out of the now mostly empty room, feeling a bit lost.

He’d planned to attend one more small talk that evening but decided he wasn’t up for it and chose instead to call it an early night. He picked up some food and then headed back to his hotel. He generally preferred eating in the room than eating alone in some restaurant, but he hated wasting money on overpriced room service.

Once he got back, he opened his lap top and went straight to the conference website, glad to see the video of today’s talk had already been uploaded. This time he did take detailed notes as he ate and listened to the words he’d so recently heard live. Once that was done, he started to search for more talks or interviews Victor had done. There wasn’t all that much but Yuuri watched everything he found before researching other sites for more information on the man and his career.

He learned that Victor had gained recognition quickly after he got into event production, with a reputation of having every project he worked on turn to gold through careful planning and effective utilization of every asset available. “Don’t let anything go to waste,” he often said, “If you have something unique and special to offer, make sure you hi-light it, because that’s something that may just be what will take an event that’s good and make it something amazing.” This was something he’d particularly emphasized when answering Yuuri’s question.

He began to think about how their own studio’s annual exhibition might be improved with some of these strategies, or even by hiring their own event producer to help them make it something great. It would be amazing if they could hire Victor himself, but of course, with his reputation the man surely had so many other offers for much more prestigious events, their humble little show wouldn’t be worth his time. And then, the very idea of getting to work with such a man… just thinking about it made Yuuri’s stomach clench in a mix of excitement and terror. Even so, he could imagine how much better the show would be with this man’s help.

Looking back at the website again, he noticed the picture they’d taken, where he stood, near the edge of the small group, with his glasses and shy smile, a stark contrast to the stunningly handsome man at the center.

Yuuri knew he was nothing special, that he was just one of probably hundreds of people Victor met at all the events he attended like this, and that the moment they’d shared after that picture was just him being polite, but it was still nice to know that even if only for a few seconds, he’d had Victor’s attention. He’d never be worthy to hold the attention of someone like that for long but he could be happy to at least have had that moment.

He was still so elated from the experience when he returned home a couple days later that he just couldn’t stop going on about what he learned and all the things Victor said, giving Minako some of the links to his videos, telling her they should incorporate some of these ideas in their next show and even suggesting that if it was within budget, maybe looking for a producer of their own instead of doing it all themselves.

Eventually time passed and he’d fallen back into the usual routine. He didn’t really forget about the conference, but there was no point in dwelling on it. Life went on as usual and he went along with it.

That is, he did until that fateful night when he’d been out, enjoying one of his usual Friday’s at the club, only to be presented with the face that still stared out at him from the photo he’d printed out and put in a simple frame to display on his desk at home. The face from the collection of articles he’d also cut out or printed to hang on the wall above the desk.

If he’d been sober, he’d most likely have run the moment he saw the man standing there, but under the influence of a full night of dancing and alcohol, he was at his most confident, and he could see the interest in the blue blue eyes looking straight into his. One night, one dance. He could take hold of this opportunity and live out a fantasy. Then one night became two, became three, became disaster.

And here Yuuri was yet again, staring into the blue eyes of Victor Nikiforov.

 

* * *

 

“Yuuri,” Minako says cheerfully as she steps up alongside Victor, “I’m sure you recognize Victor, though I suppose you haven’t formally met before this.”

Yuuri swallows thickly, fighting to maintain some kind of composure, “Not formally, no.” he manages to get out.

“Well, then I’d like to introduce Victor, who will be helping us with the annual exhibition. Victor, this is Yuuri Katsuki, our head teacher and the man who brought the whole idea of hiring someone like you to my attention.”

Yuur forces his eyes back towards Victor, who is still looking directly at him but has pasted on a smile that seems designed for charming people, but after the way he’d seen Victor smile in the club, only looks fake and forced to Yuuri, which causes a pang in his chest as he acknowledges that this is completely his own fault. What must Victor be thinking, finding him here like this, being told Yuuri had recommended him, that Yuuri knew who he was from the start?

Victor’s smile stays painted on as he speaks, “It’s nice to meet you, Yuuri. I was told you heard me speak last year?”

Yuuri only hesitates a second before shaking the proffered hand. The contact is brief but the familiar feel of Victor’s hand in his sends a similarly familiar flutter through his stomach.

“Um, Y–yes I did,” he answers weakly, unable to meet Victor’s eyes directly.

Yuuri doesn’t know how this could be more awkward, how they’ll be able to keep up this pretense while Minako looks on, but he’s equally afraid of being alone with Victor, afraid of what he’ll say, because he must be angry. Yuuri had been horrible to just leave the way he had, Victor would be justified in hating him for all eternity. It is almost a wonder Victor doesn’t just storm out now, but perhaps it was professionalism that held him back. Yuuri knew, if nothing else, that Victor was an absolute professional when it came to his job.

Minako looks like she’s about to start speaking again, a big smile on her face, but then there’s a knock on the door and the girl working the front desk today opens it, “I’m sorry Ms. Okukawa, Ms. Klein is on the phone for you.”

Minako turns to the door, Yuuri keeping his eyes on her as she tells the receptionist she’ll be there in a moment, he can’t bring himself to look in Victor’s direction but is painfully aware that he is likely going to be left alone with the other man any second now.

Minako turns back, “I’m sorry Victor, I’m afraid I need to take this, but it shouldn’t take long. In the mean time,” she turns towards Yuuri now, “Yuuri can show you around and tell you about what we usually do for our exhibition and probably answer any initial questions you might have.”

With a quick wave and a smile Minako is back out the door. Yuuri watches as it swings quietly closed behind her and immediately become intensely aware of the other presence in the room with him.

He knows he has to do something, has to say something. Minako will be back before long and they need to figure out how to move forward before she comes back, before she finds out...

Yuuri can feel the tension in the air, the expectation. Victor is waiting, letting him make the first move. He almost wishes he would yell instead, would tell Yuuri how angry he is for what Yuuri had done to him that night.

“Yuuri,” the voice is soft and he can’t help but flinch at the sound, he doesn’t deserve soft.

“I’m sorry,” he says, voice just above a whisper, “I’m sorry.”

He still can’t look at Victor but he can hear him take in a deep breath before he speaks again, “Why don’t we sit down for a minute.”

Yuuri sees him gesture to the few chairs they have in the corner for visitors and automatically moves towards them.

Victor arranges his chair so that he isn’t too close and is at an angle from Yuuri, making it easy for Yuuri to choose whether to look at him or not.

Yuuri feels slightly calmer now, but keeps his eyes firmly on his hands, clasped tight in his lap. He takes a deep breath, “I’m sorry for leaving that way the other night,” he starts, “I should have– I didn’t–“ he can’t seem to get the words out, can’t seem to find ones that would be appropriate.

He sees Victor’s hand move, as if to reach out, but then he pulls back as though thinking better of it, before clearing his throat and starting to speak, “It’s okay Yuuri,” he pauses, then keeps going, “I won’t lie, it hurt when you left, but Phichit talked to me after and as much as I’m able, I understand what happened, I know that anxiety can be hard to overcome and I’m just sorry you found yourself in a situation you couldn’t deal with.”

Yuuri just sits there frozen, not knowing what to say to this unexpected response. He hears Victor take another deep breath, and then he’s speaking again.

“And now it seems circumstances have put us in this rather awkward position. I had no idea I would find you here, and though I was surprised to hear you already knew who I was, I have a feeling you didn’t realize Ms. Okukawa had hired me before today. So that leaves us with a need to decide what we do from here.”

There’s another pause and Yuuri isn’t sure if Victor is waiting for him to respond in some way or not. He wants to, but he’s at a complete loss. He has no idea how to explain himself or what he should do next. He’s conflicted, he knows Victor can help them put on a great show, but after everything that’s happened how can Victor want to face him day after day as they do the work required to bring the show together. And then there’s his admiration of Victor, that part of him that selfishly longs to be near Victor, that basks in the light of the other man’s attention. That part of him makes him want to suffer almost anything just to stay in Victor’s presence a little longer. He’s so confused, he feels frozen in uncertainty, eyes locked onto where his hands are gripped tight onto each other in his lap.

Victor waits, but when Yuuri doesn’t answer he decides to go for broke, he doesn’t know what else he can do, “Yuuri?” He starts, hoping to at least get some acknowledgement from the other man who seems to have almost fully withdrawn, and he’s worried about sending him into another panic. He sees Yuuri turn his head to look at him, though still doesn’t meet his eyes, but it’s enough. “Yuuri, I can see this is difficult for you and if it turns out working with me will be too much then I won’t take the job, I’ll get someone else who can help you get the exhibition together...”

“What!”

He starts at the sudden outburst eyes widening as they focus on Yuuri’s face which has now turned full on towards him, tears spilling down Yuuri’s cheeks

“Why would you say that? I know I made a mistake, it was my fault, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. If you can’t work with me, I’ll get out of the way, I promise not to bother you. One of the other teachers can do it but...”

Victor has to mentally shake himself as he realizes what Yuuri is saying.

“Yuuri, Yuuri, Yuuri, no, wait, it’s not like that,” he rushes to get out wanting to stop the flow of apologies and the near desperation in Yuuri’s words. “Yuuri, please, please hear me out. I’m not upset with you, I’m not angry, I’m just worried about you. I _want_ to work with you, I really do, I meant what I said before, I want to know the real Yuuri, but I upset you last time, and then I suddenly show up at your workplace today, and I just don’t want to make things more difficult for you. If _you_ aren’t comfortable being around _me_ then I want to respect that. This job isn’t worth my hurting you over.”

He looks into Yuuri’s eyes, hoping against hope that the other man will believe him, will give him a chance, give them a chance, to at least work things out. He dares grasp onto a thread of hope as he sees Yuuri’s breathing and tears slow.

“Why?” Yuuri asks, sniffling slightly, confusion clear, “Why would you still want to be around me. I was terrible to you and you can clearly see by now what a mess I am.”

Victor’s heart breaks a little at hearing these words coming out of Yuuri’s mouth but it only makes him want to show Yuuri, just how special he is. He can’t help but sigh, wishing he could just reach out and pull Yuuri to him, wrap his arms around him and defend him against all those fears that must be scrambling all through his head telling him too many terrible things. Instead he tries his best to communicate his intentions through his eyes as he speaks.

“Oh Yuuri, there are so many reasons and I would be happy to explain them all if you want me to, but I’m not sure this is the best place and Ms. Okukawa might come back soon.” He swallows, nerves and worry rising into his own stomach, “I think we need to talk though, really talk, before we can move forward, so would it be ok if we went to dinner when you’re finished tonight? Just to talk about what we should do, nothing else, no expectation, no pressure, and we can go anyplace you like. Let’s just try to figure this out.”

He stops himself from saying anymore, afraid he’ll just start babbling endless reassurances and he doesn’t want to overwhelm Yuuri anymore than he probably already is.

Yuuri looks down at his hands again, and Victor waits tensely having no idea what kind of response he can expect at this point. He wants Yuuri to say yes, but if he doesn’t...

“Okay”

Victor blinks, unsure whether to believe his own ears.

Yuuri takes a shaky breath before speaking again, “You’re right, we shouldn’t talk here, but we need to talk.”

There’s another pause and Victor just holds his breath, feeling that Yuuri isn’t finished yet and waiting for whatever is coming next.

“Is 7:30 okay?” Yuuri finally says, looking up and meeting Victor’s eyes for the first time in their conversation, a look of determination behind the soft, rich brown eyes currently trained on him. “My last class finishes at 7:00, but if that’s too late for you...” he trails off, eyes falling again and the air of uncertainty returning.

“7:30 is perfect,” Victor rushes to respond. “I can pick you up here and we can go directly, if you’re okay with me driving, or you can just tell me where you want to eat and we can meet there.”

Victor hopes he doesn’t sound too eager as he says this but he can’t deny the flurry of excitement that’s trying to bubble up. He knows this is supposed to be so they can figure out their work situation, it’s also just a chance for them to work things out in general. They never did do much talking at the club, it’s part of why he wanted to take Yuuri out to begin with. This wasn’t the date he’d hoped for then, but it was a chance to actually connect with Yuuri to know him beyond the pounding music and blinding lights. As much fun as those nights had been, he couldn’t help wanting more from this talented, mysterious, and clearly complicated man.

“Um, well, I didn’t bring my car today, so you can pick me up,” Yuuri says hesitantly, a light blush rising to his cheeks, “Unless it’s out of your way, I’m sure I can get an Uber or something,” he adds quickly.

Victor can’t hold back a small smile, but keeps his voice even to reply, “As long as you’re comfortable with it, it’s no problem for me to pick you up. Would it be okay for us to exchange numbers though, so we can text if there’s any problems or delays?”

“Oh, yeah, I guess that’s a good idea,” Yuuri answers, blush deepening as he reaches for his bag to fish his phone out of a pocket.

Victor can’t help the slight clenching in his chest to see the light flush spreading across Yuuri’s cheeks, the obvious shyness that is so different from the bold man from the club and yet is no less appealing. These seeming contradictions only indicate to Victor the many layers of this man, and he longs to peel back and learn every single one.

Yuuri hands over his phone a second later, a new contact entry open for Victor to fill. He’s tempted to add some cute emojis to his name, but settles for just his first name, deciding to err on the side of caution until he has a better idea of what Yuuri might accept from him.

Yuuri takes back his phone, types up a short message and a few seconds later Victor feels the vibration of a received message, which he opens to see ‘Here’s my number too’ written. He saves it immediately adding a dancer and heart emoji next to Yuuri’s name.

Yuuri fidgets nervously, watching Victor save his info, unsure what to do or say next.

Victor puts his phone away and looks up at Yuuri with a soft smile, “So, I assume you’d prefer to go freshen up before Ms. Okukawa gets back. I’ll tell her I got an urgent call and need to take care of some things back at the office and offer to come back tomorrow, hopefully you and I will decide what to do tonight and we can proceed from there. Does that sound okay?”

Yuuri, just looks at Victor for a few seconds, processing the words. It sounds like a very reasonable plan and it makes sense. And he really doesn’t want Minako to see him like this, it would definitely lead to awkward questions he doesn’t want to answer just now. No, Victor is right, they need to talk, they need to work this out themselves first.

He takes a deep breath and nods, “Yeah, that’s a good idea. Thank you.”

Victor’s smile widens at his words, “No, thank _you_. Don’t worry, we’ll figure something out. You just text me where you want to eat. I’ll see you tonight.”

With that they both stand up. Victor moves to the door and pulls it open as Yuuri picks up his bag again, making sure he has everything, then stepping outside the room while Victor holds the door open.

Victor watches him head a short way down the hall before Yuuri turns again, looking back, “See you tonight.”

Watching him walk away brings back a twinge of memory from the previous Friday, but this time, he has Yuuri’s number, he knows they will talk again. This time Yuuri looked back. It isn’t the same this time. This time, there’s hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Communication! Yay! I love it when they are able to actually talk through their issues. What do you think they'll decide to do?
> 
> Thank you everyone enjoying this story! Your comments and kudos give me life and spur me on!
> 
> Wishing you all a wonderful day!!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! 
> 
> You can find me on tumblr at [@mayonaka-no-tenshi](https://mayonaka-no-tenshi.tumblr.com) and also [@mayonaka_no_yoi](https://mayonaka-no-yoi.tumblr.com) for YOI only content.


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